ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey’s health minister said on Wednesday his team would not recommend extending a weekend stay-at-home order nearly two months after it was imposed as the government continues to ease coronavirus containment measures.
Turkey has rolled out a series of measures against the outbreak since April 11, including weekend lockdowns, closure of shops and restaurants, intercity travel restrictions and more.
Speaking after a meeting with his coronavirus science team, Koca said the lockdown rule, due to expire on June 6, could be reimposed in certain provinces depending on the infection rate, which has eased significantly in recent weeks.
“The stay-at-home orders were last imposed in 15 provinces. There (will be) no such approach in the coming period, but if there are changes in provincial case numbers, it will be discussed again,” Health Minister Fahrettin Koca told reporters in Ankara. “The science team has not made a recommendation.”
The virus has killed 4,609 people in Turkey, with more than 165,000 infections so far. The economy is expected to tip into recession as a result of the containment measures, but President Tayyip Erdogan has promised a quick recovery.
(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
