Turkey conducts record daily 100,000 COVID-19 tests

ANKARA

Turkey carried out a total of 100,109 coronavirus tests on Aug. 26, marking a record number of tests done in a single day as the country faces a spike in COVID-19 infections.

Professor Mehmet Ceyhan from Hacettepe University Medical School warned that as things stand out, the coronavirus outbreak has spun out of control in Turkey.

The number of daily new infections has remained above daily recoveries over the past 10 days, Ceyhan said in his televised remarks on Aug. 26.

He also noted that “the real number of cases” are actually 10 times the officially announced figures in all countries and it might also be the case in Turkey.

“We had to take special measures in some provinces,” Koca said, referring to recent curbs on social events, such as henna nights, engagement ceremonies and circumcision parties, imposed in 14 provinces to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

As part of those measures, the duration of wedding ceremonies will be limited to one hour and food and beverages will be not served at such events.

The western province of İzmir joined other cities in introducing curbs on weddings.

Wedding ceremonies in the province should not exceed 2.5 hours and “street weddings” are banned, the governor’s office said in a statement.

Schoolyards may be made available for wedding celebrations with the permission from the governor of the district where the ceremony is planned to take place, the statement added.

In the northwestern province of Bursa, venue owners protested the government’s decision to impose curbs on weddings and engagement ceremonies, saying that because of those restrictions their businesses risk going under.

In the capital Ankara, venue owners, musicians, who perform at weddings, and waitresses, who work at such venues, demanded flexibility on the new regulation that limits the duration of weddings to one hour.