Ahmet Demircan

Turkey's Science Board is examining the possible effects of hydroxychloroquine on COVID-19 patients in the face of claims that the drug may cause some complications, Professor Ahmet Demircan, a member of the board, has said.

Twenty-four people were killed and hundreds injured when a train packed with weekend passengers derailed in northwest Turkey due to ground erosion afer heavy rains, officials said Monday.

Members of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party on Thursday were attacked by an armed group in southeastern Turkey, leaving three people killed and eight injured, according to Anadolu Agency.

Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said the members, including MP Ibrahim Halil Yildiz, were attacked while campaigning in Sanliurfa's Suruc district ahead of the elections.

The government is considering measures to replace the current cigarette packages with “uniform” packaging to discourage smoking, Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said on Feb. 9. 

Some 130 soldiers who were injured during Turkey’s “Operation Olive Branch,” launched against the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria’s Afrin, have been brought to Turkey for treatment since the offensive began on Jan. 20, Turkish Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said on Jan. 26.

Turkey’s Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said on Jan. 11 that the government has been closely monitoring the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

The obesity rate for second graders (aged around 7-8) in Turkey rose to 10 percent in 2017, up from 6.5 percent in 2009, Health Minister Ahmet Demircan said on Nov. 14, World Diabetes Day. 

Abdulkadir Yüksel, a ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmaker for the southeastern province of Gaziantep, died after suffering a heart attack in the capital Ankara on Sept. 25, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported. He was 55.

Yüksel had immediately been rushed to the Güven Hospital after suffering a heart attack but could not be rescued despite all medical efforts.

Türkan Akyol, who was the country's first female minister and university rector, died in the capital Ankara on Sept. 7. She was 89.

Professor Akyol, an academic and politician, had been receiving treatment at Hacettepe University Hospital for a while.

Akyol will be laid to rest in the Karşıyaka Cemetery in Ankara on Sept. 8.

A 6.6 magnitude earthquake hit the Aegean coast of Turkey and Greece early on July 21. At least two people, including one Turkish citizen, were killed on the Greek island of Kos due to the strong earthquake.