Turkey ends nearly 4-day nationwide coronavirus curfew

By Hamdi Celikbas

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey ended a nearly four-day nationwide curfew early Monday aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19.

The curfew, which began at 7 p.m. local time (1600GMT) Thursday and lasted until 5 a.m. (0200GMT) Monday, covered the National Sovereignty and Children's Day holiday as well as the weekend.

On April 13, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced new measures against the virus following a cabinet meeting.

In the face of rising cases and fatalities, special measures have been in effect in the country during the first two weeks of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The measures include extended hours of a curfew from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. during which inter-city travel is also banned except in emergencies. Weekend curfews also continue in high-risk cities.

Cafes and restaurants only provide delivery and takeout services while wedding halls, sports centers and game halls will remain closed until the end of Ramadan.

Turkey has so far confirmed over 4.62 million cases, more than 4 million recoveries and 38,358 fatalities.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed over 3.1 million lives in 192 countries and regions. More than 146.8 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries now over 84.62 million, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar