Turkey Records First Case of Monkeypox

Galata Tower and Ayasofya-i Kebir Camii or Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque are seen during a sunset in Istanbul, Turkey June 28, 2022. (Reuters)
Galata Tower and Ayasofya-i Kebir Camii or Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque are seen during a sunset in Istanbul, Turkey June 28, 2022. (Reuters)
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Turkey Records First Case of Monkeypox

Galata Tower and Ayasofya-i Kebir Camii or Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque are seen during a sunset in Istanbul, Turkey June 28, 2022. (Reuters)
Galata Tower and Ayasofya-i Kebir Camii or Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque are seen during a sunset in Istanbul, Turkey June 28, 2022. (Reuters)

Turkey has detected its first case of monkeypox in a 37-year-old patient who is in isolation, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Thursday.

The virus has been identified in more than 50 new countries outside the countries in Africa where it is endemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) says cases are also rising in those countries, calling for testing to be ramped up.

"Monkeypox has been detected in one of our patients. The patient is 37 years old and has an immune system deficiency," Koca wrote on Twitter.

He said the patient was in isolation and contact follow-up had been conducted, with no other case found.

There have been more than 3,400 cases of monkeypox, and one death, since the outbreak began in May, largely in Europe among men who have sex with men, according to a WHO tally. There have also been more than 1,500 cases and 66 deaths in countries this year where it more usually spreads.

Last week, the WHO ruled that the outbreak did not yet represent a public health emergency, its highest level of alert.



Greece Blocks Asylum Claims for Migrants on Crete after Surge in Arrivals

Migrants get off a bus at the port of Heraklion, Crete, Greece, 08 July 2025. EPA/NIKOS CHALKIADAKIS
Migrants get off a bus at the port of Heraklion, Crete, Greece, 08 July 2025. EPA/NIKOS CHALKIADAKIS
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Greece Blocks Asylum Claims for Migrants on Crete after Surge in Arrivals

Migrants get off a bus at the port of Heraklion, Crete, Greece, 08 July 2025. EPA/NIKOS CHALKIADAKIS
Migrants get off a bus at the port of Heraklion, Crete, Greece, 08 July 2025. EPA/NIKOS CHALKIADAKIS

Greece's government said Wednesday it is temporarily suspending asylum applications for migrants arriving on the island of Crete, following a spike in arrivals from Libya.

More than 2,000 migrants have landed on the island since the weekend, according to coast guard figures, bringing the total number of arrivals this year to over 10,000.

Speaking in parliament, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the government also planned to build a detention site on Crete for migrants and was seeking direct collaboration between the Libya and Greek coast guards to turn back boats leaving the North African country.

“This emergency situation clearly demands emergency measures,” Mitsotakis told parliament Wednesday. “The Greek government has decided to inform the European Commission that ... it will suspend the processing of asylum applications — for an initial period of three months — for those arriving by sea from North Africa.”

According to The Associated Press, the suspension will apply only to migrants reaching Crete by sea. Migrants entering illegally will be detained, Mitsotakis said. “The Greek government is sending a firm message: the route to Greece is closing, and that message is directed at all human traffickers,” he said.

Overnight, a fishing trawler carrying 520 migrants from Libya was intercepted south of Crete. A bulk carrier that took all of the migrants onboard was rerouted to the port of Lavrio, near Athens, so that the migrants could be detained on a mainland facility, authorities said.