Turkey, Georgia to close border crossing as of Sunday
Ankara and Tbilisi take measure to stem spread of coronavirus
ANKARA
Turkey and Georgia will temporarily close the Sarp border crossing for passengers as of Sunday.
According to a statement from Turkey’s Interior Ministry on Saturday, freight transportation will continue uninterrupted.
The new measure comes amid the coronavirus pandemic which has sounded global alarm.
Turkey has so far confirmed five cases of coronavirus. In order to slow down its spread, Turkey has also closed schools and banned public gatherings.
Sarp is one of the three border gates between Turkey and Georgia. The two others; Turkgozu/Vale, Aktas/Kartsakhi will operate as usual.
The new restrictions will be effective from 5 p.m. local time (1400GMT) and apply to all nationalities.
After emerging in China last December, the novel coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19, has spread to 129 countries and territories.
The global death toll from the virus has crossed 5,300 with more than 142,000 cases confirmed worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, which has termed Europe as the new epicenter of the virus.
A vast majority of those who get infected recover from the illness.
