Covid-19: Turkey announces lockdown

Muscat: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday imposed a complete closure in Turkey, starting from 29th April till 17th May to limit the spread of Covid-19.

The national level lockdown includes school closures and inter-city travel restrictions to limit the increase in infections and deaths.

Erdogan said during a meeting with the government that all inter-city travel will need approval from the authorities as well as the closure of all schools, except for the manufacturing and food sectors being exempted from the new restrictions.

The total daily infections in Turkey peaked above 63,000 on April 16, before dropping sharply to below 39,000 on Sunday, while the daily death toll remained over  300 during the past seven days.