Many of Istanbul's streets have been left deserted after Turkey imposed new weekend lockdown measures to combat a countrywide surge in new COVID-19 infections.

President Tayyip Erdogan announced tighter measures last Monday (March 29), meaning restaurants can only serve food for delivery and take-outs during the weekends and a nationwide curfew between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. will be continued. 

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The country's biggest city Istanbul and capital Ankara are among the highest-risk cities, according to a pandemic map published by the health ministry.

On Saturday, Turkey recorded 44,756 new COVID-19 cases – its highest daily figure since the start of the pandemic.

Video editing: Riaz Jugon