Turkey extends Eid holiday to 9 days

Turkey has extended Eid al-Fitr holidays from three-and-a-half days to nine days, Turkish Prime Ministry announced in a statement Thursday.

The religious holiday, which marks the end of Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, will officially start on July 5 and end on July 7. However, the eve of holiday July 4 is usually also considered a half-day workday in Turkey.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim signed a circular Thursday declaring that July 8 would also be a holiday, the statement said, thereby officially declaring a nine-day public holiday, if one includes the preceding and following weekends.

*Anadolu Agency Correspondent Hale Turkes contributed to this story from Ankara.