Turkish Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca held a press conference following the Science Council meeting on Tuesday.

The minister started his briefing with: “We have entered a new phase. Now, all the 83 million people in the country are under the direct threat of the virus. We have to show the same awareness and stand in solidarity.”

The minister said that the cities with the highest rate of infections are Istanbul, Kocaeli, Sakarya, Ankara, İzmir.

He recalled some of the measures taken to contain the spread of the virus, including the travel restrictions to 31 metropolitan municipalities and the northern province of Zonguldak, and a ban imposed on citizens over 60 and below 18 years of age to go out.

“Compliance with these restrictions will determine the fate of the days to come," he said.

The minister said that it was essential to comply with the isolation measures now applied in all 81 provinces.

The minister added that two hospitals with 1,000 beds each will be built in Istanbul within 45 days. He noted that the occupancy rate was around 50 percent in hospitals and 62 percent in intensive care units across the country.

According to the latest figures announced by the minister, the number of those infected with Covid-19 has risen to 34,109 while a total of 222,868 people have been tested.

725 have died of coronavirus so far, including the 76 people who lost their life during the past 24 hours. 1,474 people are in intensive care and 987 are intubated. Of those infected with coronavirus, 1,582 have recovered.