Egypt Tightens Preventive Measures At Airports over Covid Variant Worries

Eng. Mohamed Saeed Mahrous, the head of the Egyptian Holding Company for Airports and Air Navigation, directed the heads of affiliated companies to intensify precautionary and preventive measures over concerns of new Covid-19 variant “Omicron”.

Egypt has suspended direct flights from and to southern Africa after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a new Covid-19 variant, named Omicron, to be "of concern".

The cabinet spokesman, Nader Saad, said in statements Friday 26/11/2021 that a number of countries are targeted with a list of measures; namely South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia and Eswatini.

The travelers from these countries arriving at Cairo International Airport via indirect flights (transit) en route to other countries will be subject to rapid DNA testing, and in case any positive case is detected, it will be banned from boarding the other plane and it will depart on the same plane of arrival, Saad said.

The spokesman added that those arriving from these countries via indirect flights with Cairo being their final destination will be subject to rapid DNA testing, and in case there is a positive case, the passenger will return on board the plane of arrival.

In case the test is negative, the passenger will be required to self-quarantine for seven days at home, and a PCR will be conducted at the end of the one-week period, and the case will be monitored for another seven days through a medical team until the end of the maximum incubation period, he added.