Turkey provides medical support to Bangladesh hospitals

Turkey’s state-run aid body provided on Thursday medical supplies to hospitals in Bangladesh to help the South Asian country tackle the coronavirus outbreak.

The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) said it donated two medical ventilators, 1,000 protective overalls, 1,000 N95 masks and 5,000 surgical masks to two hospitals in Chittagong, the country's second largest city.

Salahuddin Kasem Khan, Turkey's honorary consul in Chittagong, said Turkey has stood by Bangladesh and helped Bangladeshis for a long time.

Brig. Gen. Humayun Kabir, director of Chittagong State Hospital, thanked Turkey for its support, effort and sincerity during the pandemic.

"Thanks to Turkey's support, our doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals are ready to face the challenge," he said.

The country has so far reported 175,494 COVID-19 cases, including 2,238 deaths and nearly 85,000 recoveries, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Fahri Aksut