Turkey: Total coronavirus death toll tops 2,000

By Jeyhun Aliyev and Burak Dag

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey on Sunday confirmed 127 more fatalities from the novel coronavirus outbreak over the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 2,017.

The total number of registered coronavirus cases in the country surged to 86,306 as 3,977 more people tested positive for the virus over the past day, country's Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.

So far, a total of 11,976 patients have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the virus, with 1,523 discharged on Sunday alone, Koca added.

He also said 35,344 tests were conducted over the past day, with the total reaching 634,277.

After originating in China last December, COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus, has spread to at least 185 countries and regions across the world. Europe and the U.S. are currently the worst-hit regions.

The pandemic has killed over 162,000 people, with total infections exceeding 2.35 million, while more than 605,100 have recovered from the disease, according to figures compiled by the U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.