Turkey's first communist mayor tests positive for COVID-19, district mayors under quarantine too
Turkey's first communist mayor Fatih Mehmet Maçoğlu tested positive for COVID-19, urging all district mayors in the city to self-isolate at home. The mayor of the eastern town of Dersim, Maçoğlu had tested positive on June 22 and was admitted to the local state hospital.
Duvar English
Turkey's first mayor from the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), eastern Dersim Mayor Fatih Mehmet Maçoğlu tested positive for COVID-19 on June 22, leading to precautionary isolation of the city's district mayors.
"My coronavirus test came back positive after the examination I received for my sore throat yesterday," Maçoğlu had tweeted, adding that his treatment in the local state hospital had begun.
Pülümür Mayor Müslüm Tosun, Pertek Mayor Ruhan Alan, Hozat Mayor Seyfi Geyik and Ovacık Mayor Mustafa Sarıgül from Dersim's districts were all placed under home isolation.
The Dersim Municipality's Twitter account reported on June 25 that the chief physician in the hospital had said Maçoğlu's condition was improving.
"The chief physician noted that Mayor Maçoğlu’s discomfort had decreased and that he doesn't need intensive care," the Dersim Municipality account tweeted.
In a June 23 video he shared on Twitter, Maçoğlu had assured his followers that he was doing well and had urged Dersim residents to adhere to safe distancing and wear masks.