Italy imposes up to 5 years in jail for violating coronavirus quarantine

People who flout compulsory home quarantine for testing positive to the new coronavirus in Italy will face between one and five years of prison, a newly-approved decree said late Tuesday.

"The intentional violation of the absolute prohibition for persons subjected to quarantine after testing positive to the virus to leave their home will be punished ... with imprisonment from one to five years," a press release detailing the new decree said.

Italian authorities reported 743 new deaths from the novel coronavirus outbreak, a jump after two straight days of declining figures.

After a record 793 COVID-19 deaths on Saturday, daily fatalities fell to 650 on Sunday and to 602 on Tuesday, fuelling optimism about the possibility of the health crisis subsiding.

The total death toll now stands at 6,820, up 12.2 per cent, while the total number of infections is 69,176, a daily increase of 8.2 per cent, according to the bulletin from the Civil Protection Agency.

Recoveries are up by 12 per cent to 8,326, while the number of intensive care patients - a closely watched figure given the shortage of hospital beds - has risen by 6 percent, to 3,396.