Turkey: Istanbul's COVID-19 ICU patients down by 25%

By Dilara Hamit

ANKARA (AA) - The number of COVID-19 patients under intensive care in hospitals has dropped by 25% in the Turkish metropolitan city of Istanbul, according to the governor on Tuesday.

Ali Yerlikaya said on Twitter there is also a 40% drop in the number of patients who were hospitalized due to the virus.

"We left behind the peak of the second wave of the outbreak," Yerlikaya said.

He also announced Monday that the districts which saw the fastest drops in Istanbul included Arnavutkoy, Beyoglu, and Avcilar.

Turkey has been implementing curfews on weeknights and full weekend curfews since Dec. 5 as part of measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

On weekends, the curfew begins Friday at 9 p.m. and ends Monday 5 a.m. local time.

In mid-November, Turkey introduced new COVID-19 restrictions, including a partial weekend curfew.

Some sectors, including production, supply, health, and agriculture, are exempt from the curfews.

Supermarkets, grocery stores, butchers, and dried fruit shops operate at 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekends.

Bakeries are also open during weekend curfews.

Meanwhile, restaurants only offer delivery services between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

The announcement came after a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey.