ISTANBUL

Nearly 2,000 Turkish nationals put under two-week quarantine after returning from Europe are set to go home on March 30, barring any signs of coronavirus.

The group of 1,955 arrived in Turkey on March 17 from various European countries and was placed in three student dormitories in Istanbul to guard against any spread of the virus.

Next Monday, the group is set to go through a final checkup before going home if they face no medical problems.

With checkups every day, so far reportedly no problem has come up.

In Turkey, COVID-19 has so far claimed 59 lives, while 2,433 have tested positive.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China, last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 175 countries and territories, according to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.

More than 480,000 cases have been reported worldwide since last December, with the death toll above 21,500 and nearly 116,000 successful recoveries.