Turkey: Coronavirus recoveries surpass 216,400

Country reports 987 new cases of virus over past 24 hours, bringing tally to 232,856

2020-08-02 20:15:48

ANKARA

Turkey on Sunday confirmed 978 more recoveries from the novel coronavirus, bringing the tally to 216,494, according to the country's health minister.

Citing Health Ministry data, Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter that 987 more people contracted COVID-19 over the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 232,856.

The country's death toll from the disease rose to 5,728, with 18 new fatalities over the past 24 hours.

Koca stressed that the rate of pneumonia remained the same in the provinces where the number of cases increased in the last three days.

The number of critically ill patients across the country is under control, he added.

He also expressed his concerns over the lack of measures during the Muslim Eid al Adha holiday and said that its possible results would be seen in the coming days.

On Saturday, Koca had said that the number of cases are increasing in the capital Ankara, Mardin, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep and Konya provinces.

Healthcare professionals conducted more than 40,247 tests for COVID-19 over the past day, raising the tally to over 4.88 million.

The coronavirus pandemic has claimed more than 679,400 lives in 188 countries and regions since it originated in China last December. The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries in the world.

More than 17.83 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 10.59 million, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.