Turkey rolled out new inspection and enforcement rules on Tuesday after coronavirus cases jumped above 1,000 for the first time in three weeks, in what the government called a grave rise during peak holiday season.
Top doctors have warned about insufficient testing and urged a tougher message from Ankara, which lifted a partial lockdown in June and has since lobbied hard for countries to allow tourists to visit to help get the economy back on its feet.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government had called 1,000 a critical threshold to reconsider rules.
On Tuesday it adopted daily quarantine inspections, new tracing oversight in all cities and measures for weddings, funerals and other large gatherings, even while it avoided broad curbs on economic activity.
The Interior Ministry said the nationwide rules – including some fines for violations – were needed to sustain the fight against the pandemic that has killed 5,765 and infected 234,934, putting Turkey 17th globally in a Reuters tally of total cases.
-
A health worker takes a break outside Medellin's General Hospital in Medellin, Colombia. AFP -
A clown wearing face mask poses for a picture before performing at Puente Piedra district, in the northern outskirts of Lima. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, circuses in Peru remain closed. AFP -
Researchers work at the Institute for Scientific Research and High Technology Services, in Panama City, Panama. Scientists from Panama, Japan and India are studying the benefits of a food supplement derived from a Japanese fungus to strengthen the immune system of patients with Covid-19. EPA -
People gather for a protest against plans to reopen schools in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic in New York. EPA -
An Indonesian pupil uses a smartphone while being home schooled by his mother, in Depok, West Java, Indonesia. EPA -
Stranded workers wait for shuttle services following the suspension of mass transportation on the first day of the government's reimplementation of a stricter lockdown to curb Covid-19 infections in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. Reuters -
A woman conducts a spiritual cleansing on a client looking to improve her health and her economic situation due to the coronavirus outbreak, at the Sonora market, in Mexico City, Mexico. Reuters -
Journalists interview a Spanish tourist upon arrival at Juan Santamaria airport in San Jose, Costa Rica, on the first commercial flight since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. EPA -
Merchants chat in La Vega market in Santiago, Chile. AP Photo -
US President Donald Trump leaves a Covid-19 pandemic briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House. Reuters -
Jasmine Paolini of Italy touches rackets with Daria Kasatkina of Russia after their singles match during the 31st Palermo Ladies Open - Day One in Palermo, Italy. Getty Images -
A man walks into an isolation ward to collect his belongings after recovering from Covid-19 in Machakos, Kenya. EPA -
A restaurant offering takeaways remains open during curfew in Fitzroy suburb in Melbourne, Australia. Bloomberg
The central city of Kirikkale will pilot a new call centre that checks complaints about citizens ignoring face masks and other rules, and for a "safe area" rewards system for businesses that abide them, the ministry said.
The 1,083 new Covid-19 cases reflect a "severe" rise after a four-day holiday weekend, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter, urging Turks to avoid unnecessary contact so that their vacations do not have grave consequences.
New cases had hovered just below 1,000 since July 13.
The government has not publicly disclosed the number of critical care or intubated patients since July 29, raising questions among some experts even while more than 40,000 tests have been logged daily.
Bulent Yilmaz, general secretary of the Turkish Medical Association, said people at risk were missing out on tests – even while mandatory testing was up for those in public offices, professional athletes and for people departing at airports.
"Most of the tests are done to those who need routine tests. It seems that those who are in real trouble and risk groups are not sufficiently tested," Mr Yilmaz said.
Turks ignoring social distancing on vacation was troubling, he said.
"The images from the beaches are grim, but you cannot really blame people," Mr Yilmaz said. "The government needs to show the situation is serious so that people can take it seriously, too."
Germany, Turkey's second biggest source of tourists, lifted on Tuesday a travel warning on four Turkish seaside provinces with low infection rates to help revive tourism.
