Major Turkish Cities to Go On Lockdown for Four Days Next Weekend

By Staff, Agencies

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Monday announced that the country's main cities, including Istanbul and Ankara, will go on a lockdown for four days starting May 16.

The measure was unveiled in an address to the nation following a weekly cabinet meeting, with Ankara being extra cautious ahead of a public holiday on May 19 -- the Day of Commemoration for Ataturk, Youth and Sports.

Meanwhile, an around-the-clock curfew will be imposed on the cities for four days starting on the holiday in an expansion of a measure taken by the Turkish authorities earlier.

Erdogan said his government had begun taking steps to return the life to "normal" but he warned that nothing would be the same as before.

"We have entered a new period" where rules of hygiene and social distancing need to be strictly followed, he said.

On Monday, shopping malls opened in Turkey as well as barber shops and hair salons.