A health official in China has predicted that new cases of COVID-19 in China will increase in the coming days, and the areas affected by the epidemic may continue to expand.

According to Arab Net, an official with the National Health Commission, Wu Liangyu, added at a press briefing in Beijing that the current outbreak in China is caused by a delta variable from abroad.

In turn, the commission's spokeswoman, Mi Feng, explained in the same briefing that the outbreak has spread to 11 counties per week since October 17, according to Bloomberg, Al-Arabiya.net reviewed it.

Some cities in Gansu and Inner Mongolia provinces have suspended bus and taxi services due to the virus. Cities include Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province, according to Zhou Min, an official with the Ministry of Transportation.

China reported 26 new confirmed local cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, including 7 in Inner Mongolia, 6 in Gansu, 6 in Ningxia, 4 in Beijing and one case. In Hebei, Hunan and Shaanxi, according to the National Health Commission. Another 4 local asymptomatic cases were also reported in Hunan and Yunnan.

Separately, Beijing will halt the marathon originally scheduled for October 31 due to the virus, the Beijing Daily reported. The newspaper said that people who are currently in the areas where infections were discovered are prohibited from visiting the capital or returning to it at the present time.