Egypt Says Treatment Equipment at Isolation Hospitals are Available

A man disinfects a mosque in Cairo. DPA file photo
A man disinfects a mosque in Cairo. DPA file photo
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Egypt Says Treatment Equipment at Isolation Hospitals are Available

A man disinfects a mosque in Cairo. DPA file photo
A man disinfects a mosque in Cairo. DPA file photo

The Egyptian Health Ministry confirmed on Friday that medical teams and treatment supplies were available in isolation hospitals and other medical centers providing services for COVID-19 patients, stressing that vaccination was important to stop the spread of the pandemic.

Health Minister Hala Zayed said she advised the delivery of oxygen concentrators to patients quarantining at home as part of the ministry’s policy to provide the best level of medical services.

Zayed said the Ministry is continuing to respect all preventive measures against the coronavirus at all hospitals.

“There is a need to keep a stock of medical equipment and treatment supplies sufficient for two months in every hospital receiving COVID-19 patients,” she said.

During the past 24 hours, Egypt detected 837 coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of confirmed infections since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country to 213,798.

Health Ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said in a statement that 41 patients died from complications caused by the disease, raising the death toll to 12,611.

Also, 439 patients were discharged from isolation hospitals after receiving necessary medical care, taking the number of recovered cases to 161,470 so far.

The Ministry had emphasized the importance of committing to COVID-19 precautionary measures during the holy month of Ramadan by avoiding crowded areas such as stores and malls.

Alaa Eid, head of the preventive healthcare sector, urged on Thursday all residents to get vaccinated, stressing the need to reduce family gatherings, especially for the elderly and those with chronic illness.

Eid explained that two Vacsera factories will soon begin to manufacture a coronavirus vaccine and that experiments on the manufacture of the vaccine are currently underway.

“In October 2020, Egypt’s Minister of Health Hala Zayed began communicating with the Chinese Health Ministry about producing the vaccine,” he said.



UN Chief Urges Yemen's Houthis to Release Aid Workers

(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
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UN Chief Urges Yemen's Houthis to Release Aid Workers

(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday demanded Yemen's Houthis to release dozens of aid workers, including UN staff, a year after their arrest.

The Iran-backed Houthis, who control much of the war-torn country, detained 13 UN personnel and more than 50 employees of aid groups last June, AFP reported.

"I renew my call for their immediate and unconditional release," Guterres said in a statement issued by the office of his special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.

"The UN and its humanitarian partners should never be targeted, arrested or detained while carrying out their mandates for the benefit of the people they serve," he added.

The Houthis at the time claimed an "American-Israeli spy cell" was operating under the cover of aid groups -- an accusation firmly rejected by the UN.

Guterres also lamented the "deplorable tragedy" of the death in detention of a World Food Program staffer in February.