Istanbul suffers drastic decline in tourists amid COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey

A vendor waits for customers near the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, March 16, 2021. Turkey's largest city and cultural and economic hub Istanbul is facing a drastic decline in the number of foreign tourists amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to recently released official data. In January, Istanbul saw 334,825 tourists with a 67.1-percent year-on-year decrease, the Istanbul Statistical Office announced in its latest report. (Xinhua/Xu Suhui)