Egypt toughens measures to fight coronavirus

CAIRO: Egypt on Thursday ordered the overnight closure of cafes, restaurants, nightclubs and sporting clubs to fight the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The decision, issued by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli and carried in the official gazette, covers the hours between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time and the closure will run until March 31.

The decree includes “all restaurants, cafes, casinos, nightclubs, bars, malls and any similar facilities selling commercial goods, serving food or providing entertainment services.”

It excludes bakeries, grocery stores, pharmacies and supermarkets. Egypt has so far recorded six deaths, including a German tourist in Luxor, the site of coronavirus cases originating on a Nile cruise boat, out of 210 confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Other measures have been taken to limit social interaction including reducing the number of public sector employees and the closure of schools and universities.

Egypt halted air traffic from Thursday and until March 31.

On Tuesday, Al-Azhar, the Muslim world’s prestigious institution in Egypt, allowed the suspension of mass prayers at mosques.

From handwashing stations to digital advice hubs, initiatives are underway to protect the world’s most vulnerable people from the global coronavirus epidemic.

While richer nations rush to bolster their health systems to cope, poorer nations with fewer resources are likely to struggle and suffer worse impacts, said humanitarian organizations, with refugee camps and war zones facing some of the worst risks.

“Refugees, families displaced from their homes, and those living in crisis will be hit the hardest by this outbreak,” David Miliband, president of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a charity working in more than 40 countries.

“As the world struggles to deal with the fallout of COVID-19 across its richest nations, the needs of the most vulnerable must not be neglected or forgotten,” he said.