ISTANBUL

Recoveries from the novel coronavirus in Turkey continued to climb on Monday, the country's Health Ministry said.

The number of recovered patients from the disease hit 120,015 as 1,321 more were discharged from hospitals over the past day, said Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on Twitter.

Some 987 new cases of the virus were reported in the country, bringing the total to 157,814, Koca added.

"The number of total recoveries has surpassed 120,000," Koca said, adding that the need for intensive care support continued to fall.

Koca praised the 83 million-strong Turkish population for the country's success in fighting the pandemic.

The death toll from the outbreak rose to 4,369 as the country reported 29 new fatalities in the last 24 hours, according to ministry data.

Healthcare professionals performed over 21,400 more tests for the virus, raising the overall number to over 1.85 million.

Currently, some 756 patients are being treated under intensive care, the data showed.

Since first appearing in China last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 188 countries and regions.

The US, Russia, Brazil, and several European countries are currently the hardest hit in the world.

The pandemic has killed over 345,000 people worldwide, with more than 5.45 million confirmed cases, while recoveries exceeding 2.19 million, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.