A new coronavirus, related to SARS, has been identified as the cause of an increasing number of illnesses and deaths in several countries in the Middle East and Europe.

A second case of the new coronavirus in France was announced Monday, and confirmed to be the result of patient-to-patient transmission in a French hospital.

The virus is from the same group of viruses responsible for the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), and is prompting uneasiness about the potential for another global pandemic.

"There have been over 30 cases of infection by a novel coronavirus in the past few months, most in Saudi Arabia, where over half of those infected have died," said Charles Watson, a professor of health science at Curtin University.

"The good news is that each of the clusters of infection in the Middle East and in Europe has been small, indicating that the infection is not easily passed from one person to another," he added.

Dr Sue Huang, director of the WHO National Influenza Centre in New Zealand, said that although there have been "small clusters" of person-to-person transmission, there is no evidence that the virus has the ability to spread throughout a wider community.

"Thus, this new virus has not reached a point to cause a pandemic," she said.

Huang added that this new outbreak is quite different to the SARS virus, and not as severe.

"Coronavirus represents a group of viruses. Some of them cause mild symptoms such as common colds. However, some coronaviruses -- such as the SARS virus which caused nearly 1,000 deaths in 2003 with thousands of people infected -- are much more severe.

"This new coronavirus is not the SARS virus and they are different from each other. However, the fact that it is related to the SARS virus and that it can cause severe pneumonia is raising concerns," Huang said.

Australian health experts say there is no special risk to Australia, but those travelling in the Arabian Peninsula should be vigilant about personal hygiene and avoid contact with people who have a respiratory illness.

"My main concern would be with the Hajj in mid-October this year, when about 2 million Muslims visit Saudi Arabia for the great pilgrimage.

"If the number of novel coronavirus cases continues to rise, Australia may have to consider setting up a special system to track returning pilgrims in case they develop a respiratory illness," said Watson.

Source: Xinhuanet