ANKARA 

Turkey has halted all horse races across the country amid concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, the country's agriculture and forestry minister said Friday.

The move aims to stem the coronavirus outbreak, Bekir Pakdemirli wrote on Twitter.

On Thursday the country suspended all competitions in four major sports: football, basketball, handball and volleyball.

COVID-19 emerged in Wuhan, China last December, and has since spread to at least 160 countries and territories.

Out of more than 240,000 confirmed cases, the death toll now exceeds 10,000, and over 86,000 have recovered, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University in the U.S.

Turkey has so far confirmed four deaths from the virus, and confirmed 359 cases.