Egypt Calls for Vaccinating All Tourism Sector Employees

Tourists at the Giza pyramids (Reuters)
Tourists at the Giza pyramids (Reuters)
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Egypt Calls for Vaccinating All Tourism Sector Employees

Tourists at the Giza pyramids (Reuters)
Tourists at the Giza pyramids (Reuters)

The Egyptian Health Ministry said on Monday that all tourism sector workers in Luxor and Aswan governorates should be vaccinated against the coronavirus during August.

Health Minister Hala Zayed gave the directives while she inspected the isolation unit at Luxor International Airport.

Health Ministry Spokesman Khaled Megahed said in a statement that Zayed stressed the Prime Minister’s decision not to allow any visitor to enter the country before showing a negative PCR test or a certificate proving they have been vaccinated with both doses of the COVID-19 jabs at least 14 days before arriving in Egypt.

Zayed said that 17,139 visitors have been so far quarantined at Luxor Airport.

Also on Monday, Advisor to Minister of Health for Information Technology Aysam Salah said the vaccine certificate cannot be forged because it has a QR code with the photo and identity of the person.

During an interview with a local TV channel, Salah said the certificates aim to help Egyptians traveling abroad to prove that they have been vaccinated.

Egypt recorded on Monday 49 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths, bringing the total number of infections to 284,311, including 230,699 recoveries and 16,528 deaths.



Lebanon Tells Iran Its Flights to Beirut Suspended till Feb 18

 Members of the Lebanese army walk, as supporters of Hezbollah attend a protest organized by them against what they said was violation of national sovereignty, near Beirut international airport, Lebanon, February 15, 2025. (Reuters)
Members of the Lebanese army walk, as supporters of Hezbollah attend a protest organized by them against what they said was violation of national sovereignty, near Beirut international airport, Lebanon, February 15, 2025. (Reuters)
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Lebanon Tells Iran Its Flights to Beirut Suspended till Feb 18

 Members of the Lebanese army walk, as supporters of Hezbollah attend a protest organized by them against what they said was violation of national sovereignty, near Beirut international airport, Lebanon, February 15, 2025. (Reuters)
Members of the Lebanese army walk, as supporters of Hezbollah attend a protest organized by them against what they said was violation of national sovereignty, near Beirut international airport, Lebanon, February 15, 2025. (Reuters)

Lebanese aviation officials have told Iran that Iranian flights to Beirut are suspended until Tuesday, Hossein Pourfarzaneh, head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization, was quoted as saying on Sunday by the Iranian state news agency IRNA.

Lebanon denied permission for Iranian flights to land in Beirut twice this week after the United States warned Israel might shoot the planes down, a Lebanese security source told AFP Saturday.

The first incident occurred on Thursday, when Lebanese authorities sent word to Iran that a Beirut-bound flight should not take off.

“Through the Americans, Israel informed the Lebanese state that it would target the airport if the Iranian plane landed in Lebanon,” the source said.

“The American side told the Lebanese side that Israel was serious about its threat,” the source added.

Lebanon’s public works and transport ministry then refused clearance for the flight, after consulting the prime minister and president, the source added.

The message was passed on before the flight took off, said the source.

Another flight was also barred from taking off from Iran on Friday, which prompted protests in Lebanon from supporters of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, who blocked the road to the country’s only international airport.

“The security of Beirut airport takes precedence over any other consideration,” Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Saturday.

“And the safety of travelers as well as the safety of Lebanese citizens are elements on which we will not compromise.”

Israel has on several occasions accused Hezbollah of using the airport in Beirut to bring in weapons from Iran. The group -- and Lebanese leaders -- have denied those allegations.

A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Lebanon since November 27, after more than a year of hostilities and two of months of open war between Israel and Hezbollah there.