Turkey confirms 134 cases of COVID-19 highly contagious Delta variant

Turkey has so far identified 134 cases of the Delta coronavirus variant, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on June 23. Koca also said that Turkey has lowered the COVID-19 vaccination eligibility age to 18, with appointments to be scheduled as of June 25.

Wednesday June 23 2021 05:25 pm

A woman is getting her COVID-19 vaccination shot in this photo.

Duvar English

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on June 23 that the dangerous Delta variant of the coronavirus has been detected in 134 cases so far in the country's 16 provinces. No cases of Delta Plus variant has been detected yet, he said.

Koca made the remarks during a news conference after a meeting of the Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board.

The highly contagious Delta variant is the fastest and fittest coronavirus strain that will “pick off” the most vulnerable people, the World Health Organization warned on June 21.

The WHO said that Delta is becoming the dominant variant of the disease worldwide.

Koca also said on June 23 that Turkey has lowered the COVID-19 vaccination eligibility age to 18, with appointments to be scheduled as of June 25.

In total, Turkey has given nearly 44.6 million doses since it launched an inoculation drive in mid-January.

More than 29.92 million people have received their first doses, while nearly 14.65 million are fully vaccinated, according to the latest figures released by the Health Ministry.

The ministry also confirmed 5,809 new coronavirus cases and 65 fatalities from the virus on June 23. The number of new cases on June 22 was 6,143.