Coronavirus: Turkey denies state of emergency, curfew

ANKARA

There is no truth in rumors of imposition of a state of emergency, curfew or travel restrictions in the country amid the coronavirus outbreak, head of Turkey's Communications Directorate said on Tuesday.

“Such comprehensive restrictive steps are not on our agenda,” Fahrettin Altun told Anadolu Agency.

Altun said that the measures taken against coronavirus continue in “a very transparent, determined and rational manner."

“With the awareness that we have a responsibility to protect the health of our citizens as well as their freedom, in this struggle that we are carrying out under the leadership of our [Turkish] President [Recep Tayyip Erdogan], we ask not to believe any news, information or rumors that have not been confirmed by official sources,” he said.

The virus, known as COVID-19, emerged in Wuhan, China last December, and has since spread to at least 150 countries and territories. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic.

Out of over 188,500 confirmed cases, the death toll now exceeds 7,500, while more than 80,800 have recovered, according to Worldometer, a website that compiles new case numbers.

The current number of active cases is more than 100,200, with 94% in mild condition and 6% in critical condition.

Turkey currently has 47 confirmed cases, most of which were contracted through foreign visits to the U.S., EU, or Saudi Arabia. To date there have been no deaths.

* Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur