More than 1,000 Algerian passengers are stranded at Istanbul airport because of the new coronavirus pandemic, the facility’s operator said Tuesday, as Ankara urged Algiers to allow their return home.
Algiers is refusing to let them back into the country, according to IGA Airport Operations.
“We, as IGA, Turkish Red Crescent, Turkish Airlines and Havas (bus company) have been trying to satisfy the humanitarian needs and requirements of over 1,000 Algerian visitors for several days now,” the operator said in a statement on Twitter.
“The Turkish government has been making efforts for a week now to persuade the Algerian government to grant landing rights for the affected flights.”
The North African country had confirmed 201 COVID-19 infections and 17 deaths as of Monday.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced late Tuesday the death toll in Turkey had reached 44 while the number of cases increased by 343 to 1,872 in total.
AFP
