Pandemic: Turkey reimposes 2-day curfew in 31 provinces

By Faruk Zorlu

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey has reimposed a 48-hour curfew in 31 provinces beginning at midnight as part of measures to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, the country’s Interior Ministry announced on Friday.

The curfew was ordered in the capital Ankara, Adana, Antalya, Aydin, Balikesir, Bursa, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaras, Kayseri, Kocaeli, Konya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Ordu, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Tekirdag, Trabzon, Van and Zonguldak, the ministry said in a statement.

A circular on the issue was sent to the governorships, it added.

Bakeries, hospitals, pharmacies and workplaces producing health products and medical supplies would continue to operate, according to the circular.

For the first time, Turkey imposed a 48-hour curfew in 31 provinces across the country on April 11-12, as part of measures to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

On Friday, Turkey confirmed 126 more deaths from the coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 1,769.

The novel coronavirus has spread to 185 countries and regions since emerging in China last December, with the U.S. and Europe now the hardest-hit areas in the world.

Worldwide, there are over 2.21 million cases of coronavirus with over 151,000 reported deaths. More than 565,800 people have now recovered from the coronavirus, according to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.