Turkish authorities in Ankara have placed under quarantine 132 passengers and 10 crew members of a Turkish Airlines (THY) flight organized to evacuate citizens from neighboring Iran, which has been particularly hard hit by the novel coronavirus, Deutsche Welle reported on Wednesday.
The quarantine currently involves two hospitals located in the capital city, where evacuees are under observation in one-person rooms and samples are being taken for analysis, according to the report.
Of the 142 people, four have persistent coughs and two have sore throats while the rest show no symptoms.
Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on Wednesday paid a visit to one of the hospitals, after which he held a press briefing, announcing that the results of all the tests thus far have been negative.
Turkey announced over the weekend the closure of its border with Iran after the revelation of an increasing number of coronavirus infections and deaths in the neighboring country.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released travel warnings, advising against travel to Iraq and Italy. The statement called on citizens to avoid the northern regions of Italy in particular, which were hit the hardest.