Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Turkey Extends Weekend Lockdown amid Case Surge

Specially constructed domes to ensure social distancing as a way to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, are placed on a terrace of a restaurant in Istanbul, Monday, April 12, 2021. AP

Turkey has announced that it is extending an upcoming weekend lockdown to include a public holiday on Friday, as it grapples with soaring infections.

An Interior Ministry statement said the lockdown will begin Thursday evening and end Monday morning.

Turkey has been posting record levels of infections and deaths since it eased COVID-19 restrictions in early March, The Associated Press reported.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan placed the country under a partial lockdown on April 13, involving an extended evening curfew on weekdays, a return to online education and a ban on unnecessary intercity travel, in addition to weekend lockdowns, which were re-imposed earlier.

The government has blamed the rising numbers on faster-spreading variants.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.