Turkey: 'Nearly 30,000 illegally produced masks seized'

ISTANBUL

Turkish security forces on Tuesday seized 29,400 medical masks illegally produced in textile mills in Istanbul, sources said.

Acting on a tip-off, police carried out raids in two workplaces in Kucukcekmece and Bahcelievler districts, an official told Anadolu Agency on the condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The production facilities were hence sealed, the official added.

Demand in face masks has risen globally amid the coronavirus pandemic that has killed over 37,000 people worldwide.

Masks protect people from viral pathogens and prevent sick people from spreading the disease to others.

The virus that was first detected in China last December has infected more than 788,000 people in 178 countries, according to the Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Center.

In Turkey, more than 10,000 people have tested positive while 168 people have died.

* Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur in Ankara