TOKYO, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Japan is planning to ban entry by foreign nationals who have visited certain regions in South Korea due to outbreaks of the COVID-19 virus there, government sources said Wednesday.

Specifically, the regions that foreign nationals have visited in South Korea that will be subject to the entry ban are the South Korean city of Daegu and neighboring county of Cheongdo in North Gyeongsang Province, the epicenter of the COVID-19 virus outbreak in the country, the sources said.

Entry to Japan would not be permitted for foreign citizens who have stayed in Daegu City and Cheongdo County, within 14 days of their arrival in Japan.

The ban is expected to be announced by the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a meeting on Japan's continued efforts to quash the spread of the COVID-19 virus here and will likely come into effect at midnight on Wednesday.

Japan has already banned entry to foreign nationals who have been to China's Hubei Province and Zhejiang Province within 14 days of arriving in Japan, although exceptions can be made under special circumstances.

The latest entry ban comes on the heels of the foreign ministry here a day earlier raising its alert level for both the city and country in southeastern Korea.

The ministry, in raising its alert level, advised Japanese people to avoid making trips to the region that were not essential.

South Korea reported 169 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, with the total number of infections now standing at 1,146, compared to just 51 cases a week ago.

Around 80 percent of confirmed cases of the virus came from two clusters of infections, one being at a branch of a religious sect in Daegu and the other at hospital in Cheongdo, local media here has reported.