COVID-19: Turkey donates medical equipment to Pakistan

Turkey on Wednesday donated medical protective equipment for Pakistani doctors battling the coronavirus in the country, an official said.

The medical supplies were handed over by Turkish Ambassador to Islamabad Ihsan Mustafa Yurdakul to Pakistani officials at the Islamabad International Airport.

"A special Turkish Airlines flight brought 20,000 masks, 50,000 protective suits and 100,000 face shields for our Pakistani brothers and sisters," Yurdakul told Anadolu Agency.

The medical aid was handed over to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority.

Pakistan so far confirmed 9,749 coronavirus cases with 209 fatalities, while 2,156 patients have recovered and discharged from hospitals, according to the Health Ministry.

Yurdakul also said the plane flew some 140 Turkish citizens living in Pakistan back home from Islamabad.

The evacuees will be placed under quarantine in the central Eskisehir province for 14 days.

Meanwhile, Pakistan sent one million tablets of chloroquine, an anti-malaria drug, with the Turkish Airlines flight for the treatment of coronavirus patients in Turkey.

Scientists and researchers are scrambling to find a vaccine for the novel virus which has infected over 2.57 million people worldwide and killed more than 177,000.

Until such a discovery, health experts are treating patients with anti-malaria drugs, including hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, which have shown positive results for coronavirus-related lung infection.