Turkey reports over 13,800 new coronavirus cases

Turkey registered 13,849 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, the Health Ministry said.

The ministry said 70 virus-related fatalities and 17,673 recoveries were also recorded in the past 24 hours, and 267,848 tests were done.

To counter the spread of the virus, Turkey has administered more than 146.7 million COVID-19 vaccine doses since it launched an immunization drive in January 2021.

More than 57.7 million people have received a first vaccine jab, while over 52.9 million have been immunized twice. The number of booster shots administered exceeded 27.5 million.

With the virus apparently receding, Turkey in early March scrapped its outdoor mask mandate, a longtime measure to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed more than 6.1 million lives in at least 192 countries and regions, with over 479.2 million cases reported, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University.