Egypt Eases COVID-19 Restrictions

A tourist wears a protective mask, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, during his visit to Luxor Temple in Egypt, March 9, 2020. (Reuters)
A tourist wears a protective mask, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, during his visit to Luxor Temple in Egypt, March 9, 2020. (Reuters)
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Egypt Eases COVID-19 Restrictions

A tourist wears a protective mask, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, during his visit to Luxor Temple in Egypt, March 9, 2020. (Reuters)
A tourist wears a protective mask, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, during his visit to Luxor Temple in Egypt, March 9, 2020. (Reuters)

The Egyptian government has started easing restrictions that were imposed to fight COVID-19 three months ago.

The new measures allow receiving customers at cafes, restaurants, and similar facilities until midnight. They also include shutting down the stores and shopping malls at 10 pm, and increasing the occupancy of cafes, and restaurants to 50 percent up from 25 percent.

Further, holding conferences and meetings is now allowed but with a maximum of 50 participants and with a limit of 100 people.

However, the government insisted on keeping occupancy at cinemas 25 percent and banning prayer of Eid al-Adha in squares.

Egypt has recorded 511 new COVID-19 infections, leaving the total of cases registered in the country since mid-February at 91,583, said the Egyptian Health Ministry.

In a statement, the Health Ministry said 40 patients died from the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 4,558. Also, 933 patients were cured and discharged from hospitals, raising the total number of recoveries in the country to 32,903.

Meanwhile, Manpower Minister Mohamed Saafan said that 1,285 Egyptian workers in Kuwait are returning through eight flights that kicked off Sunday.



Geagea Calls on Hezbollah to Work with Lebanese Army

 Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea. (Lebanese Forces)
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea. (Lebanese Forces)
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Geagea Calls on Hezbollah to Work with Lebanese Army

 Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea. (Lebanese Forces)
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea. (Lebanese Forces)

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea urged on Friday Hezbollah to engage with the Lebanese army and devise a plan to dismantle its military infrastructure south and north of the Litani river.

In a press conference Friday, Geagea criticized Hezbollah for opening a front with Israel and accused the Shiite group of committing a “major crime” against the Lebanese people.

“We could have done without the martyrdom of more than 4,000 people, the displacement of thousands and the destruction across the country,” he said. “Despite all these tragedies, Hezbollah continues to talk about a victory using a bizarre and disconnected logic that has no basis in reality.”

Geagea’s comments came two days after a US-brokered ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel went into effect. More than 3,900 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel's conflict with Hezbollah escalated.

Geagea, whose Lebanese Forces Party holds the largest bloc in Lebanon’s 128-member parliament, also addressed Lebanon’s presidential deadlock. The country has been without a president for more than two years.

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has scheduled a session for presidential elections in January. "Consultations with opposition factions and our allies will begin in the coming days to explore the possibility of agreeing on presidential candidates and bringing them to parliament,” Geagea said.