ANKARA

Turkey on Friday sent medical supplies to Libya to help fight the novel coronavirus, which has infected 1.6 million people worldwide and claimed nearly 96,000 lives in 185 countries.

"At the direction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as part of the preventative measures against COVID-19 virus, medical supplies were sent to our Libyan brothers and our military training cooperation and consultancy teams who are on duty in the region," the country's National Defense Ministry said on Twitter.

Turkey has been helping a number of countries to step up their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

It has sent supplies such as protective equipment and sanitizers to Balkan countries, as well as Spain, Italy and the U.K., among others.

The virus was first detected in China late last year. However, the epicenter has now shifted to the U.S. and Europe, which lead in the number of cases and deaths.