Turkish coronavirus patient in Sudan brought to homeland

Turkey on May 5 repatriated one of its nationals who is suffering from the coronavirus but was unable to get treatment in Sudan.

Mehmet Hanefi Aydın, 55, was sent home from a hospital in Sudan although he tested positive for the virus.

Aydın returned from Khartoum via an ambulance plane after his children pleaded for help on social media.

After arriving in Istanbul, he was taken to Marmara University Pendik Training and Research Hospital.

Turkey quarantines 209 expats evacuated from Maldives

Meanwhile, a total of 209 Turkish nationals who were evacuated from the Republic of Maldives were placed under a 14-day quarantine on May 6 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Their flight landed at Esenboğa Airport in the capital Ankara and the group was housed in a dormitory in Kirsehir province after health checks.

Upon the instruction of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and in coordination with the Foreign Ministry, Turkey repatriated nearly 25,000 citizens from 59 countries ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.