Turkey returns 240 nationals from W Africa amid virus

A total of 240 Turkish nationals were repatriated on May 11 from the West African nations of Ivory Coast and Liberia as part of a government initiative amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A specially arranged Turkish Airlines flight landed in Istanbul.

After routine health checks, the passengers were quarantined, as safety procedures dictate, at dormitories in the northwestern Düzce and Çanakkale provinces.

To date, Turkey has repatriated nearly 70,000 nationals from 107 nations at the instruction of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and in coordination with the Foreign Ministry.