Daily new coronavirus cases in Turkey jumped beyond 30,000 on Tuesday for the first time since Oct. 19, data showed, with the health minister warning of the rapid spread of the omicron variant, Reuters reported.
Turkey reported 32,176 cases and 184 deaths on Tuesday, according to health ministry data. Tuesday’s cases are the highest since Oct. 12.
Turkey’s daily case levels have been below or about 20,000 in December, down from about 30,000 in October. New infections surged by 30 percent on Monday to above 25,000.
“Due to the rapid spread of the omicron variant, it can be seen we are now entering a rising trend,” Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter, urging Turks to get vaccinated and receive their booster shots.
Koca said over the weekend that more than 10 percent of COVID-19 cases in Turkey were caused by omicron. Turkey announced its first omicron cases on Dec. 11.
Last week Turkey’s domestically developed COVID-19 vaccine, Turkovac, received emergency use authorization from Turkish authorities.