Turkey announces further easing of some COVID-19 restrictions

Turkey further eased measures meant to curb the pandemic on May 31 including partially lifting a weekend lockdown and opening restaurants to a limited number of guests.

Monday May 31 2021 08:15 pm

Duvar English - Reuters

Turkey further eased measures meant to curb coronavirus infections on May 31 including partially lifting a weekend lockdown and opening restaurants to a limited number of guests.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said the lighter measures, in response to falling cases, would go into effect on June 1. Under the new rules, nationwide daily curfews are delayed by an hour to 10 p.m.

Speaking after a cabinet meeting on May 31, Erdoğan announced that a curfew will be imposed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. on weekdays and Saturdays in June.

COVID-19 measures on restaurants and cafes were also eased. Restaurants and cafes will serve in-person between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., and delivery will continue until midnight.

Education Minister Ziya Selçuk said that face-to-face classes for elementary and middle school students will begin on June 1.

Erdoğan lifted virtually all social restrictions in March but backtracked in April when daily cases soared above 60,000, making Turkey briefly second globally. A partial lockdown was imposed from the end of April to May 17.

Turkey, with a population of 84 million, recorded 6,493 new coronavirus cases and 122 deaths on May 31. The country has so far registered 47,405 deaths from COVID-19, while over 5.1 million people have recovered from the disease. There have been over 5.2 million confirmed cases in the country.