Turkey has given over 74M COVID-19 vaccine shots so far

By Iclal Turan and Handan Kazanci

ANKARA/ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkey has administered more than 74.08 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched a mass vaccination campaign in January, according to figures released on Tuesday.

The country continues its intensive vaccination campaign to curb the spread of coronavirus, as everyone age 18 and over is eligible for vaccine shots.

According to the Health Ministry, over 41.23 million people have gotten their first dose, while more than 27.73 million are fully vaccinated.

Turkey is also administering third COVID-19 vaccine booster shots, and over 5.1 million such doses have been given.

To date, 66.42% of the country's adult population has received at least one dose of the two-step vaccines.

The ministry also confirmed 24,832 new infections and 126 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, while as many as 6,243 more patients recovered.

Amid a nationwide drop in cases and an expedited vaccination drive, Turkey entered a new normalization phase on July 1, lifting almost all virus-related restrictions.

However, seeking to limit the spread of the Delta variant, the country suspended flights from India and required arrivals from the UK, Iran, Egypt, and Singapore to have negative COVID-19 test results taken within 72 hours prior.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed nearly 4.24 million lives in 192 countries and regions, with some 199.1 million cases reported, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University.