Coronavirus so far claimed 473 Turkish expats abroad

By Fahri Aksut and Gozde Bayar

ANKARA (AA) - The coronavirus death toll among Turkish expatriates abroad has risen to 473, said Turkey's foreign minister on Tuesday.

Due to the outbreak Turkey has also so far brought home over 65,000 of its nationals from 103 countries, Mevlut Cavusoglu told a press conference in the capital Ankara.

Cavusoglu said Turkey will always stand by its nationals, wherever they are, and continue to evacuate them from abroad to protect them when needed.

As of Monday, Turkey registered a total of 3,461 deaths due to coronavirus, while 68,166 people have recovered from the disease. To date, the country has seen a total of 127,659 confirmed cases of the virus.

More than 3.59 million cases have been reported in 187 countries and regions since the virus emerged in China last December, with the US and Europe the world's hardest-hit areas.

A significant number of COVID-19 patients – over 1.17 million – have recovered, but the disease has also claimed over a quarter-million lives so far, according to data compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.