Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Egypt Closes Cafes, Restaurants, Malls to Counter Coronavirus


Thu 19 Mar 2020 | 11:59 AM
NaDa Mustafa

Egypt’s Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli has issued a decree on Thursday to close cafés, restaurants, parks, nightclubs, bars, and malls nationwide from 7:00 pm to 6:00 am untill 31/3/2020, within the framework of the government’s preventive measures to curb the widespread of Coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19.

The resolution will also be applied to all shops and facilities that aim at selling commercial goods, food or providing entertainment services, as well as mobile food units.

Delivery services, bakeries, grocery stores, and pharmacies, as well as supermarkets whether located inside or outside the malls, are excluded from the closure.

The decision will come into force starting today Thursday.

It is worth mentioning that, on Monday, Egypt has so far registered 210 cases of the new COVID-19 disease, including 6 deaths, according to the latest official figures.

The Egyptian Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli announced the suspension of all international flights in all the state’s airports over the outbreak of coronavirus, starting next Thursday till March 31.

Moreover, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has allocated L.E. 100 billion to fund the anti-Coronavirus strategy and its related precautionary measures.

The country announced the suspension of schools, and universities for two weeks; it also banned all large community events and gatherings until further notice to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

 The World Health Organization (WHO) declared coronavirus a global pandemic as the new virus has rapidly spread to more than 121,000 people from Asia to the Middle East, Europe, and the United States.

More cases of the virus, which causes respiratory disease Covid-19, continue to emerge, with outbreaks in South Korea, Italy, and Iran.

Transmission of viruses between humans happens when someone comes into contact with an infected person’s secretions, such as droplets in a cough. They can also be transmitted by coming into contact with something an infected person has touched and then touching your mouth, nose or eyes.