Turkey's Covid-19 Death Toll Surges to 2,900, President Declares Three-Day Curfew

112 Emergency Service's office in İstanbul (Photo: AA)

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The Health Ministry has confirmed 95 more deaths from the coronavirus outbreak over the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 2,900.

The total number of registered coronavirus cases surged to 112,261, as 2,131 more people tested positive for the virus, according to figures.

So far, a total of 33,791 patients have been discharged from medical care after recovering from the virus, with 4,651 discharged in the last 24 hours alone, Health Ministry data showed.

The results of today (April 27) also show that for the third straight day, Turkey sees more Covid-19 recoveries than new cases.

A total of 20,143 tests were conducted over the past 24 hours, with the total reaching 918,885, according to the data.

CLICK - All Updates on Turkey'S Coronavirus Tally

President announces curfew

President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has announced another extended lockdown this weekend, this one lasting three days to cover Friday's May 1 holiday.

The curfews in 31 cities where 75 percent of Turkey's population lives, meant to fight the virus, will likely continue through the end of the Sugar Feast (Eid al-Fitr), he added.

Continuing Turkey sending medical aid for the virus to countries abroad, it will send medical aid, including masks, face protectors, visors, medical-grade N95 masks, overalls, and disinfectants to the US on Tuesday, he stressed.

Global cases top three million

The number of global novel coronavirus cases crossed the 3 million mark on Monday, according to a running tally by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

The data showed that the number of infections had reached 3,002,303 while the number of people who died from complications from the virus topped 208,000. Over 878,000 people have recovered.

The US remains the country with the most infections at nearly 973,000. It also has the highest number of deaths with over 55,000.

Meanwhile, over 5.4 million coronavirus tests have been administered so far in the US.

Italy has the second-highest death toll with over 26,900, followed by Spain with over 23,500 deaths.

China, where the virus first emerged, reported a total of 4,637 deaths and nearly 84,000 cases, but those figures have raised questions both inside and beyond China.

Recently, daily fatalities have remained in the single digits in China. Also, the country's health authority said Sunday that all coronavirus patients have been discharged from hospitals in Wuhan. The total number of recoveries in China stands at 78,277.

Overall, the virus has spread to at least 185 countries since it first emerged in Wuhan last December. (EKN/VK)