Australia to help some citizens leave China, quarantine them on Christmas Island

Australia will help some citizens leave Hubei province in China, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, and quarantine them on Christmas Island, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday following a briefing by the Chinese government.

"We have taken a decision this morning to prepare a plan for an operation to provide some assisted departures for isolated and vulnerable Australians in Wuhan and the Hubei province," Morrison told reporters in Canberra.