Erdoğan convenes Turkish Cabinet via videoconference

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday convened a Cabinet meeting, with Turkey's fight against the novel coronavirus topping the agenda.

The hourlong meeting was held via videoconference as a precaution against the ongoing pandemic. An official statement was expected to follow.

The cabited decided to postpone conscription for three months. Steps to continue trade and production of goods were also discussed.

Turkey has imposed restrictions on daily life in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Though an early response to the crisis has stemmed the number of infections, the country has had mixed success in limiting public mobility, especially on weekends and given rising temperatures.

With this in mind, a weekend curfew was declared Friday in 31 mainly urban provinces.

The country's coronavirus death toll on Sunday rose to 1,198 with 97 new deaths and 481 recoveries in 24 hours, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said Sunday evening.

"We have a decrease in the number of intubated patients," Koca said in a tweet, adding that more tests lead to more diagnoses and quarantines. Cases of COVID-19 stood at 56,956 on Sunday. "This struggle is to be won by staying at home," he warned.

Turkey already had a curfew in place for those above the age of 65 and those under 20, yet stopped short of a full lockdown. The government has, until this weekend, relied on the public's compliance with calls for self-isolation. Authorities have called on people repeatedly to impose their own quarantine or lockdown measures.

Turkey was one of the first countries to take measures against the coronavirus, closing its border with Iran and halting flights from China and Italy. It has since shut down all international arrivals, restricted domestic flights and set up road checkpoints outside cities to prevent nonessential travel.