North Korea has reported an outbreak of an intestinal epidemic, as it continues to tackle the spread of what is believed to be the coronavirus.

The ruling Workers' Party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported on Thursday that the country's leader, Kim Jong Un, had sent medicines to the party committee in the southwestern city of Haeju, in South Hwanghae Province, where the outbreak occurred.

The article has a photo that shows Kim checking the medicines with his wife, Ri Sol Ju.

The newspaper does not name the disease or reveal its symptoms. South Korea's Yonhap News Agency suggests it could be typhoid or cholera.

Kim instructed party officials to contain the epidemic at the earliest date possible by quarantining suspected cases, and by thorough epidemiological examination and disinfection.

North Korea has been confirming cases of fever that are believed to be COVID-19 infections on a daily basis. Cases are reportedly on the decline, with the daily count dropping to just over 26,000 on Wednesday from the peak of over 390,000.

But the new infectious outbreak could put added strain on North Korea's healthcare system.