A military solution in Libya would be Egypt’s last resort to safeguard its security, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Sunday, one day after Egypt asserted that it has a legitimate right to intervene in the neighboring country to secure its borders amid growing tensions in the region. In an interview with Saudi owned Al-Arabiya TV, Shoukry said that Egypt has been coordinating with international and regional players in Libya, stressing that a military move would be Cairo’s “last option to preserve its security.” “We refuse Turkey s attempt to expand in Libya,” he said, adding that Ankara’s expansion in Syria, Iraq and Libya is in violation of international legitimacy. Shoukry’s interview came one day after Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said that Cairo has a legitimate right to intervene in the war-torn neighboring country to restore security and stability after receiving "direct threats" from "terrorist militias", stressing that Egypt has long been reluctant to take the move. El-Sisi said that any intervention in Libya by Egyptian forces “would be led by the Libyan tribes,” stressing that the Libyan frontline of Sirte and Al-Jufra is “a red line” for Egyptian national security. Earlier this month, President El-Sisi, commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Haftar, and the speaker of the Libyan parliament Aguila Saleh announced a peace initiative, dubbed the Cairo Declaration, to end the civil war in Libya through a ceasefire and an elected leadership council. The Cairo plan comes after the collapse of an offensive launched by Haftar in April 2019 to capture the Libyan capital, further extending the rival Government of National Accord’s (GNA) control over most of northwest Libya. Egypt, the UAE and Russia are backing Haftar in the east, while Turkey supports the Tripoli-based GNA. Shoukry said that Egypt is currently discussing the Libya situation with Tunisia and Algeria, and that the three countries have a “shared view” on the matter. The minister added that “it is time for serious action to achieve stability” in the country. On the disputed dam Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile, Shoukry said that Egypt wishes to see a "convergence of views" between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan. The minister said that Cairo has presented a draft agreement on the mega dam without providing more details, as the growing tensions with Ethiopia have pushed Egypt to ask the UN Security Council to intervene to resolve the dispute. “We have resorted to the UNSC after the Ethiopian side refused to [reach] an understanding. They have been persistent in rejecting mediations,” he said, describing the UNSC move as a “sovereign decision.” Shoukry’s comments come after El-Sisi stressed on Saturday that Egypt is committed to pursuing a diplomatic path to resolve the dispute over the hydropower dam being built near the Ethiopian border with Sudan. Saturday’s statements were the first by the Egyptian president since Egypt officially lodged a complaint with the UN Security Council after Ethiopia said it would start filling the dam’s reservoir next month regardless of whether a deal is reached.

Renewed negotiations between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) remained deadlocked after Addis Ababa refused to enter into a legally-binding agreement over the controversial project, Egypt’s irrigation ministry said on Wednesday. The days-long talks between the water ministers of the three countries that were brokered by Sudan “have made little progress" due to Ethiopia’s "intransigent positions" on both the technical and legal aspects of a deal, the ministry said in a statement. Ethiopia refused that the three countries conclude a binding agreement in accordance with international law, and stood firm on merely reaching “guiding rules that [it] can unilaterally amend,” the ministry said. Addis Ababa has also refused to include in the agreement a legally-binding mechanism to settle disputes between the three nations, or effective measures to cope with drought, the Egyptian ministry added. Sudanese Irrigation Minister Yasser Abbas suggested on Wednesday referring the contentious issues to the prime ministers of the three countries to reach a political consensus that would allow talks to resume as soon as possible. But Egypt said Ethiopia had opposed to this proposition which the Egyptian statement described as "a last-ditch attempt" to resolve the stalemate. However, a statement by the Ethiopian irrigation ministry later on the day said the meeting concluded with an agreement to continue the negotiation after "Sudanese delegation" gets a requested consultation with its prime minister done. The three countries resumed talks on 9 June via video conference after more than three months of deadlock. Officials from the US, EU and South Africa, the current chairman of the African Union, attended as observers. Abbas, meanwhile, told reporters after the talks ended that the three countries agreed on “90% or 95%” of the technical issues but the differences over the legal aspects remained unsolved. Nevertheless, his ministry said in a statement later that the legal disagreements reflect “major conceptual differences” between the three nations. The Sudanese minister said his country and Egypt refused Ethiopia’s attempts to include points on the sharing of Nile water in the deal. “The deal should be on the filling and operation of the dam, not the sharing of water quotas between the three countries.” “A deal should be signed before the start of the filling,” Abbas stressed. Ethiopia has repeatedly said it will start filling the reservoir of the mega dam next month regardless of whether an agreement is reached or not. Earlier this month Sudan asked the UN Security Council to encourage all parties to refrain from taking unilateral actions, and Egypt had also urged the bloc to call on Ethiopia to not act unilaterally by filling the dam. In response, Addis Ababa told the UN body that it “does not have a legal obligation to seek the approval of Egypt to fill the dam.” After US-sponsored meetings in Washington stumbled in February, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said the “final testing and filling [of the dam] should not take place without an agreement.” The US demand was reiterated on Wednesday when the US National Security Council (NSC) said that “it is time” to reach a deal over the GERD before Ethiopia starts filling the dam’s reservoir. In a post on its official Twitter account, the NSC said "257 million people in East Africa are relying on Ethiopia to show strong leadership, which means striking a fair deal." The US, represented by the Treasury Department, and the World Bank stepped in last year to host tripartite negotiations, which began in November and lasted till February after years-long negotiations between the three countries hit a dead end. Ethiopia, however, skipped the last round of Washington talks. Earlier this week, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said his country may resort to the United Nations Security Council to prevent Ethiopia from taking any “unilateral” action on the hydropower project if Addis Ababa remains "intransigent." Egypt stressed that it has been seeking a “fair and balanced” agreement for the three nations through nearly a decade of talks but was met by “stringent” approach from Ethiopia. Egypt, which is almost entirely dependent on the Nile River Nile for its freshwater, fears the dam will diminish its water supply, which is already below scarcity level. Some 85 percent of the Nile water that reach Egypt flow from Ethiopia highlands. Ethiopia hopes the massive $4.8 billion megaproject on the Blue Nile will, which would generate 6,000 megawatt when complete, will allow it to become Africa’s largest power exporter.

The Arab League has condemned the detention and abuse of a group of Egyptian workers in Libya. Footage circulating in recent days on social media appears to show militias loyal to Libya’s internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) assaulting tens of Egyptian workers in the western city of Tarhuna. The Arab League welcomed in a statement on Tuesday the GNA’s statement in which it vowed to arrest and punish the perpetrators of what it described as a "criminal act". The video has sparked outrage in Egypt, prompting Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel-Aal and Emigration Minister Nabila Makram to promise a proper response to the incident at the right time. On Tuesday, the United Nations raised alarm about the incident, while calling for an investigation. In its statement, the Arab League also expressed concern over the discovery of a number of mass graves mostly in the city of Tarhouna in recent days. Eight mass graves were discovered in an area evacuated this month by rival forces allied to eastern military commander Khalifa Haftar, AFP reported. The UN said it noted the discovery "with horror". “A source at the Arab League warned of the danger of reprisal killings on the fabric of the Libyan society and on the success of the political course and ceasefire efforts,” the statement said. “The source also emphasised the illegitimacy of methods of detaining, insulting, and torturing civilians, both Libyans and non-Libyans as a means of delivering political messages,” the statement added. The Arab League also expressed its readiness to cooperate with the Libyan authorities in both incidents. Egypt has supported east-based military commander Khalifa Hifter who is fighting the forces of the UN-backed government in the capital, Tripoli.

Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed said on Tuesday that Egypt ranked among the lowest in countries worldwide regarding the number of deaths from the coronavirus, adding that those with chronic diseases were the first in terms of deaths. Egypt reported 94 new fatalities on Tuesday, bringing the total number of deaths to 1,766 so far.

Egypt will seek other options, including going to the United Nations Security Council, if Ethiopia remains intransigent during the new round of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) talks, Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry stated on Monday in Cairo. According to the Egyptian foreign ministry, Shoukry said at a lecture organised by the Egyptian Business Council for International Cooperation that Egypt has been committed to negotiating in good faith to reach a balanced and fair agreement to the “GERD crisis” in the past years for the best interest of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. "The latest round of negotiations will not yield positive results as long as Ethiopia is intransigent, in which case Egypt will have to look into other options, such as going to the UN Security Council to shoulder its responsibility in protecting international peace and security by stopping Ethiopia from taking a unilateral action that will negatively affect Egypt s water rights." Shoukry s statements came as the irrigation ministers of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia have started another round of online talks over GERD on Monday after failing to reach an agreement a few days ago. Egypt and Sudan presented last month two memos to the Security Council, detailing the GERD situation from its onset and how both countries have concerns about the dam which Ethiopia said it plans to fill in early July in violation of earlier agreements. Ethiopia hopes the massive $4.8 billion megaproject on the Blue Nile will allow it to become Africa s largest power exporter. But Egypt, which relies on the Blue Nile for 85 percent of its freshwater, fears the dam will diminish its water supply, which is already below scarcity level. Egypt has a water share of around 570 cubic metres per person annually, well below the water scarcity level of 1,000 cubic metres per person per year. The figure is expected to drop further to 500 cubic metres by 2025. On regional developments During the lecture, Shoukry also discussed the global political, economic, and social challenges as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, and tackled several regional issues, including developments in Palestine, Libya, Yemen and Syria. He stressed Egypt s rejection of unilateral actions by Israel to annex the West Bank, stating this may end opportunities to revive the peace process based on the two states solution as well as the Arab Peace initiative. On Libya, Shoukry spoke about the Cairo Declaration initiative Egypt announced two weeks ago, saying it was in line with the current UN initiatives and agreements. “The initiative aims to ensure fair representation for Libya s three provinces, unifying its institutions, and the fair distribution of Libya s wealth,” the Egyptian foreign minister said. Shoukry asserted it is necessary to reach a comprehensive political settlement in Syria in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2254 to ensure the country s unity and the safety of its institutions. Shoukry also stated the Yemen crisis needed a political solution and an end to foreign intervention.

Egypt will resume flights at all Egyptian airports with countries that have opened their airports as of 1 July, the country s Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Manar announced, according to state news agency MENA. Egypt announced last week it was only resuming international flights to some coastal cities that have been least affected by the coronavirus starting the beginning of July while keeping other regular international flights suspended. The areas are southern Sinai, the Red Sea govenorate and Marsa Matrouh on the Mediterranean, the cabinet said Egypt suspended international flights on 19 March in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus. It has since only allowed its airports to open to domestic, freight and special repatriation flights. The government has so far allowed dozens of hotels to operate at a reduced occupancy rate after adhering to safety protocols. The move is meant to revive its key tourism sector, which has been hit hard by the virus restrictions. The permitted occupancy rate of the reopened hotels was initially set at 25 percent, but was increased to 50 percent earlier this month.

The spokesperson of the Egyptian Irrigation Ministry Mohamed El-Sebaie said Egypt is keen on reaching consensus regarding the disputed Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) during the ongoing online talks, which set off on Tuesday, but without returning back to square one. The irrigation ministries of Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia started online talks on the GERD in the attendance of observers from the US, the EU and South Africa. The virtual talks come on the back of Sudan s endeavours to bring back the concerned parties to the table following an escalating war of words between Cairo and Addis Ababa. In an interview with MBC Masr satellite channel over the phone on Thursday, El-Sebaie said "Egypt is keen on achieving joint gains [for the three countries] without harming any party, and without returning back to point zero. I mean we will not start from the beginning." He stressed Egypt s four conditions during the virtual meeting: Egypt demands confirmation from Ethiopia it would take no “unilateral action” on filling the dam until an agreement is reached; a specific timeframe from 9 to 13 June to reach an agreement on the filling and operation of the dam; talks should be based on the terms of reference to the Washington and World Bank-brokered document in February; and that the observers who have been attending the meetings act as “facilitators.” "We hope to reach [an agreement] that satisfies all sides ... and feel there is a genuine will on all sides to reach consensus... if there is no will, we will never reach consensus," he added. The spokesman noted that the Sudanese side doesn t support one side more than the other, adding that Sudan is a main partner in the negotiations because it has direct interests and each country is keen on attaining its objectives. "The target is not to reach a conflict of interests," he stressed. The ongoing talks are the first between the three sides since February, when the Washington and World Bank-mediated negotiations came to a halt after Ethiopia pulled out of a meeting in Washington. When talks between the three African countries reached a deadlock last October the US stepped in to act as an observer of negotiations.

Egypt s Cabinet agreed on Wednesday to exempt incoming tourists on charter flights from the paying the tourist visa till 31 October 2020, the end of the summer tourism season. The decision is part of measures to encourage tourism following the expected resumption of flights in the upcoming period. Egypt has suspended international flights since mid-March to curb the spread of coronavirus. The civil aviation ministry has decided to grant a 50 percent discount on landing fees for charter trips to all touristic cities.

The Egyptian government will hike electricity prices by up to 30 percent for households next fiscal year but will extend its plan to phase out power subsidies by three more years, Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker said on Tuesday. The new price hikes range from 17 to 30 percent based on consumption levels, the minister said in a televised press conference. They will take effect starting July 1 and appear on the electricity bills for August. Egypt was initially planning to entirely phase out electricity subsidies by the end of the 2018-2019 fiscal year but extended the period until the end of the 2021-2022 fiscal year before announcing Tuesday that subsidies will be phased out even more gradually through 2024-2025. The delay in the gradual lifting of subsidies is estimated to cost the government EGP 26.7 billion (approx. $1.64 billion), Shaker said. The minister said that current electricity bills sometimes have errors and that the ministry was working to eliminate these errors through several mechanisms including by installing pre-paid electricity smart cards. Here are the new rates based on tiers: - First tier of usage: First 50 kilowatt hours (kWh) – increased from 30 to 38 piastres per kilowatt-hour (26.6%) - Second tier: 51-100 kilowatt hour – increased from 40 to 48 piastres (20%) - Third tier: First 200 kilowatt hour – increased from 50 to 65 piastres (30%) - Fourth tier: 201-350 kilowatt hours – increased from 82 to 96 piastres (16%) - Fifth tier: 351-650 kilowatt hours– increased from 100 to 118 piastres (18 %) - Sixth tier: 651-1,000 kilowatt hours – is fixed at 1.40 piastres. - Seventh tier: Above 1,000-kilowatt hours is not subsided and is sold for 145 piastres.

Egypt’s Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) said on Monday it has rearranged its priorities to include vital sectors, including the healthcare sector, due to the coronavirus pandemic. In a virtual press conference attended by Ahram Online, the SWF’s Executive Ayman Soliman said the fund has repositioned priorities to include food and pharmaceutical manufacturing, healthcare services and financial services and financial inclusion sectors. “Investments in financial technology [fintech] is no longer a luxury, especially as some sectors see a recovery due to the pandemic,” he said. He revealed that talks are ongoing with a number of investors over investment opportunities in the sector, without providing further details. He said the fund has held talks with African funds in Senegal, Uganda and others to export the "Egyptian experience" on financial technology directly. Soliman said the fund’s priorities also include investments in manufacturing and infrastructure. “There are incoming requests to the fund for investments in infrastructure. Our goal is to use capital recycling in the sector,” he said.

Egypt’s Medical Syndicate announced on Sunday that the number of doctors that have died from coronavirus since the outbreak of the epidemic in Egypt has reached 47. Dr. Philipe Mitri, an ear, nose and throat consultant, is the 47th doctor to pass away from coronavirus complications in Egypt, Ibrahim El-Zayat, a member of the Medical Syndicate’s board, said on Sunday. According to El-Zayat, six other doctors passed away from coronavirus on Saturday. The six doctors are obstetrics and gynecology consultants Samir Othman, Ayman Zaki and Youhana Lotfy, pediatric surgeon Mahmoud Khedr, pediatrician Hisham Abd El-Hamid, and neurosurgeon Sayid Rushdy. In May, Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said that Egyptian doctors who die from coronavirus are treated as martyrs. He added that financial compensations to the doctors families will be handled by the Fund of Medical Professions announced by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi in late March.

Egypt decided late on Wednesday to cancel a seven-day mandatory quarantine period for Egyptians arriving from abroad that was meant to limit the spread of the croronavirus, sources told Al-Ahram Arabic. The period was initially set at 14 days before authorities shortened it over two weeks ago to one week. Instead of being quarantined at hotels, university dorms, or student hostels upon arriving, returnees will be required to self-quarantine at home for two weeks as a precaution against the virus. Upon arrival, returning nationals will undergo a coronavirus rapid test at the airport, and those who show symptoms of the illness will be transferred to isolation hospitals, while those who don’t would be allowed to spend their quarantine at home. Cairo International Airport started implementing the decision on Wednesday night when it received three flights repatriating 450 citizens from Lebanon, a source at the airport told Al-Ahram. None of the passengers showed any symptoms of the virus and they were allowed to leave the airport to their homes where they will be required to self-quarantine. According to Al-Ahram, the airport in the Red Sea city of Marsa Allam was late in applying the decision, sending passengers who arrived Wednesday night to designated quarantine hotels. The airport had received Wednesday two flights from Saudi Arabia and a flight from Kuwait with a total of around 500 passengers. Returnees were expected to be discharged from quarantine and returned to Cairo within hours as none of them showed symptoms when tested at the airport, airport sources said in the early hours of Thursday. The government had covered the quarantine costs of those staying at university hostels. However, those who decided to spend their quarantine period at designated hotels in the city of Marsa Alam had to pay for their stay. Egypt is mainly keeping its airspace open to cargo and domestic flights during the general flight suspension, which has been in place since March. Egypt is still operating flights to repatriate its citizens from abroad. Earlier this week, Aviation Minister Mohamed Manar Enaba said the government was considering resuming international flights, expecting the halt to be lifted within weeks. The date is yet to be announced. Egypt reported Wednesday 1,079 new coronavirus cases and 36 deaths, with the number of new cases continuing to drop for a third straight day. The country’s total now stands at 28,615 cases and 1,088 deaths.

Egypt s Health Minister Hala Zayed has appealed to suspected coronavirus cases to head to the nearest of 376 hospitals that have been designated to receive cases in an attempt to reduce the burden on hospitals specialised in fever and chest problems, the ministry said in a statement. Zayed s statements were made during an inspection tour Tuesday of a number of hospitals across Cairo as part of efforts to monitor their performance. The minister s call comes days after her remarks that "some families prefer to treat their infected member at home,” describing it as "a phenomenon,” adding that most cases come to hospitals very late. "Anyone who has respiratory symptoms or a high fever should consider himself infected and has to go to the nearest hospital immediately," Zayed said earlier this week. The call, however, came amid citizen complaints about a shortage of hospital beds, with some claiming they can barely find hospitals in which to treat their relatives. The minister emphasised during her tour the increase in the number of beds in all hospitals that receive suspected and infected cases of coronavirus nationwide to more than 35,000 beds, and 5,800 ICU beds. According to health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed, Zayed stated that coronavirus tests and also treatments are provided free of charge in the ministry s hospitals. All general hospitals in Egypt started from 21 May to provide coronavirus tests, including conducting clinical examinations as well as running blood tests and chest x-rays, and PCR tests. As for the cost of coronavirus treatment at private hospitals, the ministry announced on Monday setting a fixed cost for Covid-19 treatment at such facilities ranging from EGP 1,500 to EGP 10,000 (approximately $90 to $600) covering hospital services, medical supplies, doctors’ fees, accommodation, and testing. The ministry s fixed prices were announced the day after prime ministerial directive to cap the cost of coronavirus treatment at private medical facilities to correct some "exaggerated prices." Tuesday saw the detection of 1,152 new coronavirus infections – a decline for the second day in a row down from 1,536 on Sunday and 1,399 on Monday – in Egypt where it had taken the virus 50 days to reach the milestone of the first 1,000 infections nationwide since the detection of the first case on 14 February. Despite the steady rise of infections Egypt has been witnessing in recent days, Zayed said that "we cannot confirm or deny that we are now witnessing the peak stage.” "We will not be able to determine the peak stage until after it has passed and the rate of infections begins to decrease for two consecutive weeks," Zayed said Saturday, appealing to all citizens to adhere to wearing face masks or even "a piece of cotton cloth" before coming out of their homes. Masks became mandatory, according to a cabinet decree, starting Saturday for workers or visitors at markets, shops, banks, governmental or private institutions, as well as for commuters taking public or private transportation with violators subject to a fine of up to EGP 4,000.

Egypt is expected to cancel the current seven-day quarantine period for Egyptians arriving from abroad, chairman of the state-owned EgyptAir Holding Company Roshdi Zakaria said on Monday. Upon their arrival, returnees will undergo a coronavirus rapid test at the airport, and those who show no symptoms will spend a quarantine period at home, Zakaria explained in a phone call with CBC Extra TV channel. Those who show coronavirus symptoms, however, will be transferred to isolation hospitals, he added. In May, Egypt shortened a mandatory quarantine period for Egyptians arriving from abroad from 14 days to one week. Returnees who test negative by the end of the period were allowed to spend the rest of their quarantine at home. The government is covering the quarantine cost of those staying at university hostels. Those willing to spend their quarantine period at designated hotels in the Mediterranean city of Marsa Alam will have to pay for their stay. Meanwhile, Egypt’s civil aviation ministry will operate additional special flights in the upcoming two weeks to repatriate Egyptians stranded abroad. The flights will fly to eight destinations including Beirut, Oman, Muscat, Dubai, Jeddah, Riyadh, Baghdad and Sydney. Egypt is mainly keeping its airspace open to cargo and domestic flights during the flight suspension, which has been in place since mid-March. Egypt is just operating flights to repatriate its citizens from abroad and has returned home at least 12,000 Egyptians so far. The country has signaled a “gradual resumption” of international flights in the second half of June or the first half of July, according to statements by Cabinet spokesman Nader Saad earlier this week.

Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Monday Egypt is expected to witness a surge in the number of coronavirus patients in the next two weeks. Throughout the past week the country has been recording higher rates of the pandemic. In his meeting with the governors via video conference, Madbouly said coronavirus cases were treated at quarantine hospitals only before the Islamic holiday of Eid El-Fitr, but that at present 320 hospitals affiliated to the Ministry of Health are screening and treating coronavirus patients. Egypt has thus far recorded 24,985 coronavirus cases, including 6,037 fully recovered patients and 959 fatalities. The meeting saw the return of Daqahaliya Governor Ayman Mokhtar who recovered from the virus, along with his wife, last week.

Egyptian hotels operating with a new reduced occupancy rate of 25% to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus have almost reached full capacity, a tourism ministry official told Reuters on Sunday. Egypt suspended international flights in March and shut down restaurants, hotels and cafes in order to combat the pandemic. Although airports remain closed to all but domestic and repatriation flights, hotels were recently allowed to reopen at a quarter of their usual capacity if they met strict health and safety protocols. Around 78 hotels, mostly along the Red Sea coast, met these rules and are currently operating with an occupancy rate of 20%-22%, said the ministry official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. An additional 173 hotels across the country have applied for a licence to reopen and will be considered in the coming week, he added. The government said it aimed to increase the permitted occupancy rate of hotels to 50% in June. Tourism is one of the country’s main sources of foreign currency and accounts for 5% of GDP. Egypt has so far registered 23,449 cases of the new coronavirus including 913 deaths. Some of the first cases registered in the country were of foreign nationals.

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi wrote on his Twitter and Facebook accounts on Thursday asking the Egyptian people to maintain their solidarity and to stand together at this “important moment” to face the coronavirus pandemic. “As the efforts of the Egyptian state, the government and the people continue to face this pandemic, implement the development plans, and preserve the economic stability during the hardest circumstances, the enemies of the nation try to question the state’s achievements and efforts. “I reassert my confidence in the Egyptian people who always demonstrate their strength in facing those campaigns; God bless Egypt and Egyptians,” El-Sisi wrote. Egypt has until Wednesday recorded 19,666 coronavirus cases, including 5,205 fully recovered patients and 816 fatalities.

Initial investigation into the death of Dr Walid Yehia Abdel-Halim after he had contracted the coronavirus revealed that "some aspects of administrative deficiency" have occurred in dealing with the infected doctor at the hospital, the health ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. In light of the inaccurate information circulated on some media outlets and social media platforms regarding the death of Abdel-Halim, a doctor at El-Munira General Hospital, a fact-finding committee was formed to determine the causes of his death following the Minister of Health Hala Zayed s directives to open an urgent and immediate investigation, the statement added. The committee s initial investigation unveiled that on 18 May Abdel-Alim exhibited symptoms of fever. A swipe coronavirus test was carried out on the same day, the statement said. On 19 May the result came back positive for coronavirus and the doctor was given the necessary treatment in line with the treatment protocol. "As a result of a chest pain and shortness of breath, the doctor came to El-Munira Hospital on 22 May and stayed for one day before being transferred on Saturday morning, 23 May, to Nasr City Insurance Hospital [one of the isolation hospitals]," the ministry said, adding that he was given the necessary medications according to the ministry s treatment protocols. Nevertheless, a cardiomyopathy occurred and Abdel-Halim did not respond to the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) attempts, leading to his death on Sunday, 24 May. "The committee found through its initial investigations some administrative shortcomings in dealing with the case at the hospital," the ministry said without specifying which hospital. The committee said "it is currently working on determining those responsible for these shortcomings" and the accountability of each of them in preparation for taking the necessary administrative measures towards them. The ministry will announce these measures as soon as the committee concludes its investigations, the statement noted. The death of Abdel-Halim sparked uproar among doctors across social media platforms as the medical staff "is not receiving the adequate care." There have been repeated calls for the ministry to allocate special hospitals for infected healthcare workers amid a surge in cases and reports of delayed tests or lack of beds at isolation hospitals. In a statement on Monday, the Egyptian medical syndicate held the ministry "fully responsible" for the rise in coronavirus infections and deaths among medical staff which it said is the result of the ministry’s “inaction and negligence to protect them.” According to the syndicate s figures issued on Monday, over 350 doctors have contracted the virus and 19 died. The ministry, however, mentioned a lower number on the same day saying that the pandemic has infected 291 health workers, including 69 physicians, and killed 11 among medical staff. "The surge in cases is the result of the ministry’s refusal to conduct early tests to detect infections among hospital staff or for workers who came in contact with positive cases, and its failure to swiftly offer places for treating infected workers, the syndicate said. The syndicate called on all doctors to insist on their right to ensure that all protective measures are implemented before they start their work, including access to personal protective gear, receiving the necessary training to deal with coronavirus cases in triage or isolation hospitals, undergoing tests if they show symptoms or have come into contact with positive cases without taking the necessary protective measures, and access to necessary supplies and medicines. The syndicate reiterated its demand for designating special isolation hospitals for medics infected with the highly contagious virus. In response, Zayed said in a statement on Monday that health authorities were “working hard to protect medical staff facing the coronavirus” and have 1amadopted all necessary precautions to do so, noting that all staff members undergo tests before entering and leaving hospitals. "An immediate test is conducted for anyone showing symptoms while on duty. The ministry has intensified the [coronavirus] periodical tests carried out for medical staff, with 9,578 rapid tests and 8,913 PCR tests conducted so far," she said. The statement said the ministry has designated a special 20-bed floor for infected staff in every quarantine hospital since the virus emerged in the country in February. Egypt has until Tuesday recorded 797 coronavirus fatalities and 18,756 positive cases.

Egypt detected 789 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, its highest toll in a single day, hitting the 18,000 infections mark to report a total infection tally of 18,756, the health ministry announced. The ministry also reported 14 new deaths, bringing the total deaths from the virus to 797 The statement said that 127 patients, have been discharged, bringing the total number of recoveries to 5027. Health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said in the statement that the number of people whose test results have turned from positive to negative, including the 5027.recoveries, has now reached 5606 More to follow

As Egyptians have been under partial lockdown since March and schools and university students have since relied on E-learning due to the coronavirus pandemic, the usage of telecommunication services and internet consumption saw a heavy increase in May, Egypt s National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) said. The NTRA attributed the high traffic to the considerable increase in the online streaming of TV shows during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. According to the NTRA s monthly report, international voice calls increased by four percent during Ramadan and 19 percent since the beginning of curfew in Egypt last March. Local voice calls decreased by 1 percent during Ramadan and 7 percent since March. The report recorded an increase in home internet usage by 12 percent during Ramadan, raising the usage rate since March to 99 percent. The mobile internet usage rose by 17 percent last month, bringing the total increase since March to 35 percent. According to the NTRA report, the usage of video applications such as TikTok, YouTube, Telegram and Zoom witnessed growth by 24, 115, 1,100 and 3,456 percent, respectively. The usage of Shahid, an Arabic video-on-demand service in the Middle East, increased by 157 percent. The usage of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Snapshot has increased by 44, 12, 27 and 67 percent, respectively. The rate of online game applications increased by 75 percent. The rate of browsing the websites of the ministries education, technical education and higher education and scientific research saw a surge of 395 percent since March and 19 percent during the last month. The curfew was first introduced in March as part of a series of measures to curtail the spread of the virus and has been extended two times since. The curfew was initially set at 7pm, but it was later pushed back to 8pm, and then to 9pm at the beginning of Ramadan. The country decided to prolong the lockdown hours during the Eid Al-Fitr holiday, starting at 5pm, as part of its bid to curb the spread of the contagion during the religious holiday, which is typically associated with family gatherings and packed public places. Starting 30 May, and for two weeks, the curfew will run from 8 pm to 6 am, as the country aims to gradually reopen more businesses and some venues including sporting clubs and restaurants from mid-June.

Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS) says it has sent a warning to the editor-in-chief of The Washington Post newspaper over “professional misconduct and disinformation” displayed in a recent report on Egypt. The SIS, which is responsible for regulating the affairs of foreign press and media correspondents in Egypt, also said in a press release on Saturday that it has alerted the Cairo bureau chief of The New York Times over “numerous professional violations in some of his recent reports.” Chairman of the SIS Diaa Rashwan met with Cairo Bureau Chief for The Washington Post Sudarsan Raghavan late on Saturday. Rashwan briefed Raghavan on “the professional misconduct, disinformation and misinformation contained in his recent reports on Egypt,” the SIS said in its statement. Rashwan handed Raghavan a copy of the letter sent to the editor-in-chief of The Washington Post detailing “the journalistic violations by its Cairo-based reporter, who was issued a warning that in the event that such professional violations . . . appropriate measures permitted by both the law in Egypt and the rules of many countries worldwide shall be taken against him.” In the letter to the editor-in-chief, the SIS specifically referred to a report published in The Washington Post on 10 May 2020 titled ‘As coronavirus spreads in Egypt, Sissi sees opportunity to tighten his grip.’ The letter detailed what the SIS described as “professional violations” in the report. The SIS said that the report anonymously quoted “human rights activists”, and directed “very serious accusations to the Egyptian government, describing it as a ‘military-backed government’.” The SIS argued that this rhetoric is “at odds with the reality of Egypt’s established civilian state with all its legitimate institutions, governed by a constitution approved by the people in a referendum.” The SIS also said in the letter that contrary to what was mentioned in the report, the amendments to the emergency law were due to “the country s need to take extraordinary measures to counter the spread of the coronavirus,” and not to “grant the country s security institutions additional powers.” The letter stressed that the amendments – which expand powers to “ban or limit public and private gatherings, to shut down schools, and to restrict people from owning, transporting, selling, buying or exporting any goods or services, as well as control their prices” – are essential for any country in order to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The SIS denied the correspondent’s claim that “the government did not respond to a request for comment,” saying that it had not received any communication from the correspondent in this regard. It also stressed that unlike what was mentioned in the report, the banning of prison visits was not to “silence political prisoners”, but rather to “protect the prisoners themselves from the pandemic.” The SIS said that based on such “professional misconduct,” it warned Raghavan of the need to “adhere to the proper professional standards when practicing his journalistic work in Egypt.” The SIS added in its statement that its chairman Rashwan also met with Cairo bureau chief for The New York Times Declan Walsh, and alerted him on “numerous professional violations in some of his recent reports.” The SIS underscored that it had previously issued a warning to the US newspaper’s bureau chief last month. Bellow is the full text of the SIS letter: Dear Mr. Martin Baron Editor-in-Chief, The Washington Post The State Information Service (SIS) conveys its highest regards to you and your esteemed newspaper and wishes to notify you of the following: Based on our appreciation of the Washington Post, and its known adherence to professional rules in journalism, we wish to inform you that the newspaper’s Cairo Bureau Chief Mr. Sudarsan Raghavan has often encroached on the rules of the press profession, which are recognized throughout the world and are endorsed by your esteemed newspaper. The latest example of such encroachment is the report by Mr. Raghavan titled “As coronavirus spreads in Egypt, Sissi sees opportunity to tighten his grip”, which was published in The Washington Post on 10/5/2020 and contained numerous professional violations as follows: - The report attributed to what it calls “human rights activists”, an anonymous source, very serious accusations to the Egyptian government, describing it as a “military-backed government”. Such words are mere rhetoric and are at odds with the reality of Egypt’s established civil State with all its legitimate institutions, governed by a constitution approved by the people in a referendum. Officials of State institutions (the Presidency and Parliament) came into power through free elections monitored by hundreds of reporters from around the world, including the correspondent of your esteemed newspaper. - At the same time, your correspondent in the aforementioned report accused officials in Egypt of exploiting amendments to the emergency law to grant the country s security institutions additional powers. It is a false accusation as the amendments to the emergency law were necessitated by the country s need to take extraordinary measures to counter the spread of the "Coronavirus". These are appropriate measures, considerably mitigated than those that all the nations of the world, including the United States itself, have had to take. - The correspondent based his report on a highly politicized statement by Human Rights Watch, which was rejected by Egypt. Besides, what your reporter has said about giving the State s official authorities the powers to “ban or limit public and private gatherings, to shut down schools, and to restrict people from owning, transporting, selling, buying or exporting any goods or services, as well as control their prices” are necessary measures taken by all the countries of the world in the face of the pandemic. - Your correspondent, who resorted to mere platitude by what he labeled “activists” and a tendentious statement by HRW, lives in Cairo and could have followed the rules of journalistic work by resorting to the relevant sources and taking their views into account when publishing the report, as well as following up on the reality in the Egyptian street, where citizens roam in much greater freedom than other countries despite the spread of the pandemic; a matter reflecting that the intervention of all official authorities in the lives of individuals is at a lower level than any measures in other countries. - The correspondent claimed that “the government did not respond to a request for comment”. Unfortunately, the State Information Service has not received any communication from the correspondent in this regard. In fact, the correspondent consistently has not contacted SIS to communicate with stakeholders in Egypt for most of his reports abundant in allegations and fallacies. - Your correspondent made false claims that the Egyptian people s revolution in 2013 to get rid of religious fascism was a “military coup”, While ignoring the armed terrorism that our country has been subjected to so far by these terrorist groups invoking the Islamic religion, and claiming that terrorists who are being fairly tried in public for their crimes are political opponents. - Your correspondent ignored all the rules of the journalism profession when he turned to a researcher at the Washington-based Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, and an unknown researcher said to be from Amnesty International. It would have been prudent for him to witness firsthand the situation on the ground, rather than propagating their baseless claims and ignoring the views of the concerned parties on these allegations, thus violating press rules requiring that the views of all parties be taken on an equal footing. - In his report, your correspondent criticizes the temporary suspension of prison visits and sees it as a way to “silence political prisoners”, while it is a measure to protect the prisoners themselves from the pandemic. Prison visits have been replaced by other means of communication between prisoners and their relatives. Present-day realities confirm that this measure has so far helped to protect the lives of prisoners. - This biased, unprofessional and subjective report is a continuation of the excesses of your correspondent in Cairo, based in its entirety on raising the most serious accusations against the State institutions in Egypt, resorting to the same type of sources, either anonymous sources labelled as "activists", or researchers, harboring well-known negative stances against Egypt, who do not reside in it and even have not entered it for years. - The presence of the reporter in Cairo and granting him accreditation as a foreign correspondent means, under journalistic customs worldwide, that the correspondent has to apprise himself of the reality and to communicate with all parties, not to poll the opinions of everyone who has antagonism with the Egyptian State around the world. In light of all the above, we wish to inform you that the State Information Service has met with Mr. Sudarsan Raghavan and warned him of the need to adhere to the proper professional standards when practicing his journalistic work in Egypt, in accordance with his accreditation as a foreign correspondent. Otherwise, we will have to take measures, permitted by law in Egypt and the guidelines regulating the work of accredited foreign correspondents, and which are applied not only in Egypt, but also globally. In conclusion, we wish to express to you our sincere appreciation to the esteemed "The Washington Post" newspaper, which undoubtedly would not tolerate such professional violations by its Cairo bureau chief, which are inconsistent with the newspaper’s status and credibility. Sincerely, Diaa Rashwan Chairman, State Information Service