Turkey Daily Pandemic Cases Rise Past 1,000 After Measures Eased

(Bloomberg) -- Daily coronavirus cases in Turkey rose above 1,000 for the first time since May 29, following a partial rollback of measures to arrest the spread of the pandemic. The nation’s health minister warned citizens about a “erroneous optimism.”

The Health Ministry reported 1,195 new cases Friday, taking the total to 175,218. The daily increase was the highest since May 17. Fifteen people died from the virus, with total fatalities reaching 4,778.

“The spread of the virus stems from erroneous optimism,” Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter. “We should observe mask, distance and hygiene rules.”

The increase follows a gradual easing of restrictions starting at the end of May, including an end to a curfew for people older than the age of 65 and younger than 18. Theaters were allowed to reopen, while inter-city travel restrictions were lifted and domestic flights restarted.

The Turkish government declared “mission accomplished” against the outbreak May 20, when new cases declined to below 1,000 for the first time since the early days of the outbreak.

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