The number of cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Turkey has grown to 18, presidential administration spokesman Fahrettin Altun said on Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th March, 2020) The number of cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Turkey has grown to 18, presidential administration spokesman Fahrettin Altun said on Monday.
Earlier, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca put the number of identified coronavirus cases in the country at six. Four of these patients were infected due to contact with a man who arrived from Europe and became the first patient with COVID-19 identified in Turkey; one person became infected during a pilgrimage trip to Saudi Arabia.
"The number of cases in Turkey has unfortunately risen to 18 today. We are implementing strong monitoring protocols in our land and sea borders in addition to already strict measures at our airports," Altun said on Twitter.
According to the Daily Sabah newspaper, seven out of 18 coronavirus patients returned from trips to European countries, another three arrived from the United States.
On March 11, the World Health Organization announced the outbreak of the new coronavirus COVID-19 a pandemic. More than 153,000 people in 143 countries and territories have been confirmed to be infected, the majority of them have recovered, but more than 5,700 people have died.
