Buildings illuminated with slogans reading "Come on, Wuhan" to cheer the city up in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Cheng Min)

Facing the complicated and severe epidemic situation, China has made it a top priority to fight the novel coronavirus, determined to win the battle against the epidemic by relying on the people and with concerted efforts.

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- To fight the novel coronavirus outbreak, China has mobilized medical resources nationwide to treat infected people, taken decisive measures to curb its spread and closely cooperated with the international community.

China is waging a fight of unprecedented proportions against the epidemic, as the country had reported 11,791 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus and 259 deaths from the disease in 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps by the end of Friday.

The fight is made even harder by the fact that the novel coronavirus broke out in Wuhan, a transport hub with a population of over 10 million. At a time when China is experiencing the world's largest annual migration of people around the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year holiday, the control and prevention efforts are encountering great challenges.

Facing the complicated and severe epidemic situation, China has made it a top priority to fight the novel coronavirus, determined to win the battle against the epidemic by relying on the people and with concerted efforts.

The country's leadership held decision-making meetings and directed the containment and treatment efforts. Within days of the first cases being reported, Chinese scientists determined the genome sequence of the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and shared it with the World Health Organization (WHO). China also welcomed WHO officials to visit Wuhan.

In an unprecedented move, Wuhan was locked down to curb the spread of the virus. The 31 provincial-level regions all activated top-level emergency responses to the coronavirus. Long-distance bus services were halted in many provinces.

The country extended the Spring Festival holiday and postponed the opening of the new school semesters.

The timely and regular release of epidemic information enables citizens to be aware of self-protection measures and how to contribute to containing the virus.

Members of a military medical team in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan, 30, 2020. (Photo by Chen Chen/Xinhua)

Medical teams from across the country rushed to Wuhan, which faced strained resources in diagnosing and treating the rapidly rising number of infected people on its own in the early stages.

Meanwhile, some local health officials have been sacked or suspended from their posts due to lax work in fighting the epidemic.

China's measures have been swift, transparent and decisive. Otherwise, the situation would have been far graver, both in and outside China. This runs quite contrary to some foreign media reports which have attempted to distort and defame China's efficient handling of the outbreak.

China's effective control of the epidemic situation safeguards global health. Cooperation is needed for countries to cope with such challenges. The international community has provided support and assistance in different ways to help China combat the epidemic.

At a crucial time of fighting the novel coronavirus, China, as a responsible country, deserves more understanding from the international community. The epidemic is a global challenge that must be addressed through cooperation. ■