Koca

A Chinese coronavirus vaccine delivery to Turkey was postponed on Dec. 27 for "one or two days," the Turkish health minister announced.

The latest snag was caused by an emergency in Beijing customs due to the discovery of a novel coronavirus case there, Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.

Turkish Airlines will begin requiring passengers on overseas flights to submit negative PCR tests as of Dec. 30, the national flag carrier announced late on Dec. 26.

According to a statement posted on the company's official social media accounts, the requirement will come into effect with a two-day delay from the previously announced date.

Turkey targets to complete the vaccination of between 30 million to 35 million people by March in a massive inoculation drive, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said, adding that this will provide "a significant relief" in the country's fight against the outbreak.

Turkey's health minister said his country and German company BioNTech struck a deal early on Dec. 25, and that initially, 550,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine would be sent to the country by the end of the year or early 2021 at the latest.

According to Fahrettin Koca, 4.5 million doses of the vaccine will be sent to Turkey by the end of March 2021 under the agreement.

A COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Sinovac Biotech is 91.25% effective and the rate is likely to increase based on late-stage trial data, Turkish researchers said on Dec. 24, as the country becomes the second trial site to produce results for the Chinese candidate.

Turkey late on Dec. 20 joined other European countries in banning flights from the U.K. and other countries due to concerns over a new fast-moving coronavirus strain. 

"It has been reported that the rate of transmission has increased in the U.K. with the mutation of the coronavirus," Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca wrote on Twitter.

An investigation has been launched into a fire at a private hospital in the southeastern province of Gaziantep that killed at least 11 patients in a COVID-19 intensive care unit.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the fire that occurred on Dec. 19 was caused by a high-flow oxygen therapy machine used to treat coronavirus patients.

The local health authority of the southern province of Antalya has launched an investigation after allegations of workplace bullying into a chief physician at a state hospital who reportedly punished two nurses and made them write "I am a fool" hundreds of times.

The phase two trials of the Turkish-made COVID-19 vaccine will begin on Dec. 25, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced on late Dec. 12.

Turkey's health minister says his country has no plans to make vaccination against the new coronavirus mandatory but will work to convince the public about the safety of the vaccines.