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Turkey will close certain streets and squares during the upcoming four-day weekend curfew as part of measures against the spread of coronavirus during the New Year's Eve celebrations, with the ban also covering foreign tourists, authorities announced on Dec. 30. 

Procedural and administrative actions have been taken against a total of 40,591 people across Turkey who violated the weeknight curfews and full lockdown on the weekend between Dec. 21 and Dec. 28, the country's Interior Ministry has said.

Records are being broken in the United States as well, and the pandemic has contributed to the highest mortality in American history. In Germany, despite strict measures, a record number of dead.
Israel today reported four cases of a new strain of coronavirus that appeared in Great Britain, Reuters reports.

The number of coronavirus cases in Istanbul dropped 40% last week, the city's governor said on Dec. 21. 

Ali Yerlikaya said on Twitter that there is a continuous drop in the positive COVID-19 cases in Istanbul and the districts which saw the fastest drops were Arnavutköy, Beyoğlu and Avcılar.

Turkey ended a countrywide weekend curfew early on Dec. 21 as part of measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

The curfew began on Friday at 9 p.m. and ended on Monday at 5 a.m. local time.

In late November, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced new COVID-19 restrictions, including a curfew on weeknights and full weekend curfews.

Turkey has suspended flights from the U.K., Denmark, the Netherlands and South Africa 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," Health Minister Fahrettin Koca wrote on Twitter on late Dec. 20.

Italy approved new restrictions on Thursday to avoid a new surge in coronavirus infections during the Christmas and New Year holidays. 

Under current curbs, which will remain in place, the country is divided into three zones with restrictions calibrated according to infection rates.

A hard lockdown is on the table for regions that have been unable to control transmission of the novel coronavirus and are struggling with hospital admissions, government spokesman Stelios Petsas indicated on Wednesday.

Germany entered a complete lockdown at midnight, and France is replacing the previous lockdown with curfew.
The measures will last in Germany until January 10, and during that period, only essential stores such as supermarkets and pharmacies, as well as banks, will work.

The government on Monday announced lockdown rules for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as well as for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Gatherings at homes will be limited to a maximum of nine people from two families, government spokesman Stelios Petsas said.

He added that the 10 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew will also apply.