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Egypt to Start Clinical Trials on First Locally Manufactured Vaccine

A worker is seen during the preparation of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines produced by VACSERA Co. in Cairo, Egypt July 8, 2021. Picture taken July 8, 2021. REUTERS/Shokry Hussien
A worker is seen during the preparation of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines produced by VACSERA Co. in Cairo, Egypt July 8, 2021. Picture taken July 8, 2021. REUTERS/Shokry Hussien
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Egypt to Start Clinical Trials on First Locally Manufactured Vaccine

A worker is seen during the preparation of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines produced by VACSERA Co. in Cairo, Egypt July 8, 2021. Picture taken July 8, 2021. REUTERS/Shokry Hussien
A worker is seen during the preparation of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines produced by VACSERA Co. in Cairo, Egypt July 8, 2021. Picture taken July 8, 2021. REUTERS/Shokry Hussien

Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdel Ghaffar is expected to announce next Wednesday the start of clinical trials on the first Egyptian COVID-19 vaccine produced by the National Research Centre (NRC).

In a statement, a copy of which was obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, the NRC said that Ghaffar would make the announcement in a press conference attended by head of the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA), which is the body entitled to give permissions on clinical trials after studying the special file of every vaccine.

The clinical trials would be conducted on a group of volunteers at the hospital of the National Research Center.

This important development is considered the first in the country’s scientific research history.

It was preceded by lab and animal testing, which produced very promising results, allowing the EDA to give permission for manufacturing the first doses of the Covi Vax vaccine.

In previous statements, Mohamed Ahmed Ali, head of the center's virology laboratory, said that the clinical trials respected scientific rules and were conducted on 10,000 to 15,000 volunteers.

The Egyptian vaccine contains 4 proteins for MERS-CoV, which leads to high-dose antibodies against the virus.

After passing clinical trials, the vaccine will be the first to be manufactured in the country through solely Egyptian efforts.

The Health Ministry said that 331 new coronavirus cases were detected in Egypt over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections to 289,684.

In a statement, spokesman for the Health Ministry Khaled Megahed said 10 patients have died from the virus over the past 24 hours, raising the death toll to 16,776.

As many as 439 patients were discharged from hospitals after receiving necessary medical care, taking the number of recoveries to 241,415, he added.

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Arab World

Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal Compared to Swiss Cheese, Full of Gaps

Israelis block road in Jerusalem, demanding agreement implementation and hostage release (AFP)
Israelis block road in Jerusalem, demanding agreement implementation and hostage release (AFP)
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Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal Compared to Swiss Cheese, Full of Gaps

Israelis block road in Jerusalem, demanding agreement implementation and hostage release (AFP)
Israelis block road in Jerusalem, demanding agreement implementation and hostage release (AFP)

The ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal reached between Israel and Hamas on Wednesday evening is facing a crisis that could prevent it from going forward before it gets Israeli approval or is put into effect.
The agreement is full of gaps, much like Swiss cheese. Despite outlining three phases aimed at bringing the war to a close, it is accompanied by Israeli military actions that continue to claim dozens of lives in Gaza.
Asharq Al-Awsat reviewed the deal’s terms and the different interpretations from both sides.
The first issue comes from the opening of the agreement’s appendix: Practical procedures and mechanisms to implement the agreement for the exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and the return to a sustainable calm which would achieve a permanent ceasefire between the two sides.
What does “sustainable calm” mean? In Israel, officials say it means Israel has the right to resume fighting after the first phase. Palestinians, however, claim US President-elect Donald Trump’s administration has promised the war won’t restart. Both sides interpret the term differently.
The goal of the agreement is clear: release all Israeli prisoners—alive or dead—captured by Palestinians. In return, Israel will release a “negotiated number” of Palestinian prisoners.
The exchange is set to begin on “Day One,” the day the ceasefire takes effect, but it's still unclear when that will be.
In the first phase (42 days), the agreement calls for “a temporary halt to military operations by both sides and the withdrawal of the Israeli army eastward” from “high-population areas along the Gaza border, including the Gaza Valley.”
Hamas claims the maps provided for this were incomplete.
Even though the agreement mentions “the return of displaced people to their homes and withdrawal from Gaza Valley,” people will have to walk several kilometers and vehicles will be inspected, which could lead to disagreements and clashes.
As for humanitarian aid, the agreement allows for its entry starting on “Day One” (600 trucks daily, including 50 fuel trucks, with 300 heading to northern Gaza).
This includes fuel for the power plant and equipment for debris removal, rehabilitation, and hospital operations.
But the agreement doesn’t clarify how the aid will be distributed or who will control it. Will Hamas continue to oversee it? Will Israel agree? If Hamas takes charge, what happens then? This could lead to further complications.
The criteria for the first phase of the prisoner exchange are clear, but the agreement states that “the prisoner exchange terms for the first phase will not apply to the second phase.”
Hamas wants more Palestinian prisoners released, but Israel rejects this. If disagreements have arisen over clear criteria in the first phase, what will happen when the criteria are more vague?
The agreement sets a deadline of “Day 16” for indirect talks to finalize the conditions for the second phase, particularly regarding the prisoner exchange.
One clause is seen by Israel as not requiring it to carry out the second phase, while Hamas views it as a guarantee to prevent the war from restarting. The clause states: “Qatar, the US, and Egypt will make every effort to ensure continued indirect negotiations until both sides agree on the terms for the second phase.”
However, the phrase “make every effort” does not create a binding legal obligation.
The agreement is full of gaps that could become major problems for both sides. While this doesn’t mean the deal should be dismissed, it shows that many parts of the agreement are fragile and depend on mutual trust and good intentions—both of which are lacking in this region.