TURKEY BANS SMOKING IN PUBLIC AREAS AMID SURGE OF COVID-19

Thu 12 November 2020:

Smoking will no longer be allowed on crowded streets and other public areas in Turkey starting Thursday, officials have announced.

In a circular to the governors of the country’s 81 provinces, the Interior Ministry declared Wednesday that a smoking ban would be introduced in “areas like avenues, streets and stops where citizens are crowded.”

The circular also included new measures against the novel coronavirus pandemic, including a stay-home order for people over 65 years.

In a nationwide notice, the Interior Ministry said the smoking ban aimed to ensure citizens comply with rules to wear protective masks properly in public because people were seen to lower them while smoking.

“For this reason, in order to ensure that masks are worn at all times and properly, as of November 12, 2020, a smoking ban will be imposed in areas and regions such as streets and avenues where citizens are or can be crowded together, necessary public squares and public transportation stops,” the ministry said.

Earlier, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca urged citizens to comply fully with mask wearing and social distancing rules. “I am only asking you to do what you can. Nothing more,” Koca wrote on Twitter.

Earlier this week, a partial lockdown on senior citizens was also imposed in some provinces, including the capital Ankara and its largest city Istanbul, banning citizens over 65 from being outside between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

old between 10.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m., local time.

Turkey has so far reported more than 402,000 COVID-19 cases, while over 344,000 of the patients have recovered from the disease which has claimed 11,613 lives in the country.

President Tayyip Erdogan announced last week that all business, including restaurants, cafes, pools and cinemas, would close at 10 p.m. daily as part of measures against the pandemic.

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