Chinese leader Xi Jinping set up an epidemic control group on Saturday amid a viral pneumonia outbreak that is spreading swiftly across the country.
In an emergency meeting with his closest political inner circle, Xi Jinping warned of the “grave situation” and the “accelerating spread” of the epidemic, saying the new task force should focus on containing the situation with utmost urgency and that should be the highest priority task for all levels of government organs, according to state news agency Xinhua.