PodcastTurkey warns against travel to Italy, Iraq amid coronavirus outbreak
Turkey has warned its citizens against unnecessary travel to Italy and Iraq amid growing concerns about the outbreak of a novel form of coronavirus originating from China.
Duvar English
Turkey has advised its citizens against traveling to Italy and Iraq “unless absolutely necessary” amid coronavirus outbreak.
In two separate statements, Turkey's Foreign Ministry on Feb. 26 “strongly advised” Turkish citizens not to visit infected areas in Italy and Iraq.
Ankara has already suspended rail and air services to Iran, where the outbreak has claimed 19 lives so far. Border crossings between the two countries also remain closed.
While Iraq has diagnosed five cases as yet, some 322 cases have been reported in Italy with at least 11 deaths thus far, according to its health ministry. All those who have died so far in Italy have been elderly and most had underlying health problems.
In China, from where the virus emerged last December, there have been 2,717 deaths with over 78,000 confirmed cases.
Outside the Chinese mainland, the infection has spread to more than 30 other countries including South Korea and Japan.
The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak an international health emergency.