Turkey Eases Coronavirus-Related Restrictions

People wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, walk along a commercial area in Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP)
People wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, walk along a commercial area in Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP)
TT
20

Turkey Eases Coronavirus-Related Restrictions

People wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, walk along a commercial area in Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP)
People wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, walk along a commercial area in Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 12, 2022. (AP)

Turkey eased the majority of coronavirus-related restrictions on Wednesday, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said, almost two years after the first case was identified in the country.

In a televised speech, Koca said wearing masks will not be mandatory outdoors or indoors when there is enough ventilation.

A contact tracing app code will no longer be asked when entering places like shopping malls or public institutions.

The fight against the disease will be at an individual level rather than society-wide, Koca said, adding that people without symptoms will not be tested.



Car Bombing Kills 13 Pakistani Soldiers Near Afghan Border

A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
TT
20

Car Bombing Kills 13 Pakistani Soldiers Near Afghan Border

A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR
A Pakistani policeman keeps watch on a roadside during the month of Muharram, in Lahore, Pakistan, 27 June 2025. EPA/RAHAT DAR

An explosive-laden car rammed into a Pakistani military convoy on Saturday in a town near the Afghan border, killing at least 13 soldiers, sources said.

Four Pakistani intelligence officials and a senior local administrator told Reuters that the convoy was attacked in Mir Ali area of North Waziristan district.

Around 10 other soldiers were wounded, some critically, and they were being airlifted to a military hospital, the sources said.

"It was huge, a big bang," said the local administrator, adding that residents of the town could see a large amount of smoke billowing from the scene from a great distance.

One resident said that the explosion rattled the windowpanes of nearby houses, and caused some roofs to collapse.

No one has so far claimed responsibility.

The Pakistani military did not respond to a Reuters request for a comment.

The lawless district which sits next to Afghanistan has long served as a safe haven for different militant groups, who operate on both sides of the border.

Islamabad says the militants run training camps in Afghanistan to launch attacks inside Pakistan, a charge Kabul denies, saying the militancy is Pakistan's domestic issue.

Pakistani Taliban also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella group of several militant groups, has long been waging a war against Pakistan in a bid to overthrow the government.

The Pakistani military, which has launched several offensives against the militants, has mostly been their prime target.