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CAIRO – 29 March 2020: The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) ended Sunday in a semi-collective rise. However, it lost LE 1.9 billion of market capitalization, amid Arab and foreign selling.

The benchmark EGX 30 dipped 1.54 percent, or 152.8 points, to close at 9,760.18 points.

On the other hand, the equally weighted index EGX 50 increased 0.05 percent, or 0.67 points, to end at 1,339.83 points.

The small and mid-cap index EGX 70 rose 1.95 percent, or 18.67 points, to close at 978.09 points, and the broader index EGX 100 hiked 0.19 percent, or 2.02 points to 1,038.18 points.

Market capitalization lost LE 1.9 billion, recording LE 537.95 billion, compared to LE 539.91 billion in Thursday’s session.

The trading volume reached 194.52 million shares, traded through 19,775 transactions, with a turnover of LE 390.81 million.

Egyptian investors were 59 buyers at LE 105.41 million, while Arab and foreign investors were net sellers at LE 5.27 million, and LE 99.81 million, respectively.

Arab and foreign individuals were net sellers at LE 6.99 million, and LE 973,273, respectively, while Egyptian individuals were net buyers at LE 27.21 million.

Egyptian and Arab organizations bought at LE 78.19 million, and LE 1.4 million, respectively, while foreign organizations sold at LE 100.78 million.

Sabaa International Company for Pharmaceutical and Chemical, Samad Misr -EGYFERT, and B Investments Holding were top gainers of the session at 9.95 percent, 9.94 percent and 9.40 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, Ismailia Development and Real Estate Co, El Ezz Porcelain (Gemma), and Arab Co. for Asset Management and Development were top losers of the session by 4.48 percent, 3.77 percent, and 3.69 percent, respectively.

On Thursday, EGX ended the session in green, EGX 30 rose 0.48 percent, EGX 50 increased 1.97 percent,EGX 70 inched up 3.15 percent,and EGX 100 hiked 1.40 percent.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: "A limited number of Egyptian families in some villages are in quarantine for two weeks to prevent the spread of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)," said Ministry of Health spokesperson Khaled Megahed in media remarks on Sunday.

He told ExtraNews channel this morning that only four families have been quarantined after a few people of their relatives tested positive for the virus, noting that this is only a protective measure to curb the virus spread.

هل قامت مصر بعزل بعض المحافظات للحد من انتشار كورونا؟ المتحدث باسم الصحة يكشف الحقيقة#eXtranews pic.twitter.com/RiQyHNSb7m

— eXtra news (@Extranewstv) March 29, 2020

He confirmed that the Ministry of Supply provides those families with all their basic needs, while the Ministry of Interior is in charge of their security, denying the media remarks claiming that a number of governorates were put on a lockdown.

The Egyptian Ministry of Health confirmed Saturday 40 new cases of COVID-19, including one Jordanian national, to raise the number of coronavirus patients in Egypt to 576. The death toll rose to 36 people after confirming six more deaths [five Egyptians and one Italian].

"The total number of the recovered people rose to 161 cases so far, while those who have been discharged from the isolation hospitals reached 121," the ministry added.

As yet, the global cases infected with the virus reached 680,453 people and 31,912 deaths were reported, while the recovered cases rose to 146,352. On March 10, 2020, the virus was announced a global pandemic by the World Health Organization.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: "Under President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi’s mandate, the Egyptian government will manufacture ventilators amid the shortage the world faces during the war against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)," said Cabinet media advisor Hani Younis.

"During a meeting with Minister of Industry Nevin Gamei and Head of the Federation of Egyptian Industries (FEI) Mohamed al-Siwidy on Saturday, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli said that President Sisi ordered manufacturing the ventilators and providing the Egyptian factories with the supplies they need to prevent importations amid the current coronavirus crisis," Younis told "Al-Hikaya" talk show on MBC channel.

Younis added that the government asserted that all facilities will be provided concerning this matter.

Gamei told “Al-Youm” talk show on DMC channel that the Cabinet issued a decree to exclude the workers of pharmaceutical and food factories from the partial 14-day curfew that has been imposed since March 24, 2020.

Many countries around the globe suffer from a shortage of ventilators. US President Donald Trump ordered General Motors to produce ventilators for the Covid-19 patients, Time reported on Saturday. Italy, which is facing an uncontrolled situation of the virus' spread, suffered a massive shortage of ventilators to the extent that hospitals changed the scuba diving masks into ventilators, CBC news stated on Saturday. Meanwhile, the European Union has set a plan to produce more ventilators.

The Egyptian Ministry of Health confirmed Saturday 40 new cases of COVID-19, including one Jordanian national, to raise the number of coronavirus patients in Egypt to 576. The death toll rose to 36 people after confirming six more deaths [five Egyptians and one Italian].

"The total number of the recovered people rose to 161 cases so far, while those who have been discharged from the isolation hospitals reached 121," the ministry added.

As yet, the global cases infected with the virus reached 680,453 people and 31,912 deaths were reported, while the recovered cases rose to 146,352. On March 10, 2020, the virus was announced a global pandemic by the World Health Organization.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: The Ministry of Interior has detected hundreds of violations of the rules set by the Cabinet to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in less than one week.

The measures that went into effect on March 25 include the closure of stores, the shopping malls and service outlets from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., and the shutdown of restaurants and cafes for 15 days.

The police fined 213 stores, cafes, restaurants, and shopping malls, and 73 private tutoring centers. As private tutoring centers were banned earlier this month, and a large number of them were shut down, the total figure becomes 12,531 across the country.

Furthermore, the police broke market manipulation 571 cases, including 251 cases pertinent to monopoly, product hiding to create a deficiency in supply, and price manipulation.

On March 25, prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced a bundle of protective measures against COVID-19, including a partial curfew from 7:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. starting March 26 for 15 days.

Egypt declares partial curfew for 15 days starting Wednesday

CAIRO - 24 March 2020: Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly held a press conference on Tuesday to announce a bunch of strict protective measures taken in the face of the coronavirus pandemic starting Wednesday for 15 days. First, a curfew takes place between 7:00 p.m until 6:00 a.m.

CAIRO – 29 March 2020: "Ministry of Communications and Information Technology pumped about LE 30 billion to expand the international internet corridors coming to Egypt at the end of 2019, to increase Egypt's internet capacities by about 30 percent in 2020," Communication Minister Amr Talaat said Sunday.

Talaat added that those capacities have contributed to a significant improvement in the quality of internet services. He noted that without these new capacities, we would have been in a major crisis, especially in light of the high demand from all segments of society with the precautionary measures taken by the state against coronavirus spread, including allowing employees to work from home and activating distant education.

On the slow internet speed, he pointed out that the decline in internet services is a bit of a global problem and is not only in Egypt, after various countries of the world have allowed working from home through reliance on the World Wide Web.

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has taken a set of measures and initiatives to reduce the burdens on citizens and facilitate their daily activities to keep pace with the precautionary measures taken by the state to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

These initiatives included one to support e-learning during the period of suspension of schools and universities by increasing the capacities of internet packages by 20 percent, as well as making the browsing service available to "Knowledge Bank", educational platforms and websites free of charge, to ensure that the educational process is not affected during the suspension period.

Telecom Egypt increases capacity of landline internet packages 20%

CAIRO - 17 March 2020: Telecom Egypt has increased the capacities of landline internet packages offered to its customers by 20 percent, as part of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology initiative to support students in the education process.

In addition, the National Communications Regulatory Authority (NCRA) agreed with mobile operators in Egypt to enhance the use of electronic transactions by providing the citizens with incentive offers on its e-services. The incentives will be offered when charging the balance using electronic payment methods, whether through the electronic applications of each company or by charging the balance using the cash service (electronically). This offer gives 30 times the balance charged worth of minutes and free units when using this feature.

Egypt offers incentives over charging mobiles electronically

CAIRO - 20 March 2020: The National Communications Regulatory Authority (NCRA) agreed with the mobile operators in Egypt to enhance the use of electronic transactions by providing incentive offers on its services provided to citizens.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: Minister of Manpower Mohamed Saafan told the media that the number of irregular workers who applied on the ministry’s website to receive financial assistance worth LE500 monthly has recorded 1.2 million since last week until Sunday.

Sunday only marked 500,000 applications which will be reviewed to evaluate eligibility. Already registered irregular workers have started receiving the allowance that is an emergency measure mandated by the coronavirus outbreak.

The state has allocated LE100 billion to face the repercussions of the pandemic, including boosting the social safety network, and healthcare services. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced on March 24 granting the Ministry of Health and Population LE1 billion to handle the COVID-19 crisis.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly held a press conference on Tuesday to announce a bunch of strict protective measures taken in the face of the coronavirus pandemic starting Wednesday for 15 days, including a partial curfew.

Egypt declares partial curfew for 15 days starting Wednesday

CAIRO - 24 March 2020: Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly held a press conference on Tuesday to announce a bunch of strict protective measures taken in the face of the coronavirus pandemic starting Wednesday for 15 days. First, a curfew takes place between 7:00 p.m until 6:00 a.m.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: Commenting the success achieved by Omar Khairat’s concert on YouTube, Minister of Culture Inas Abdel Dayem said that she did not expect this number of views, despite knowing the concert will receive high viewership.

Abdel Dayem noted that the reaction she received from Egypt and the world encouraged her to continue presenting a wide diversity of concerts.

In a phone call on one of the programs broadcast on TEN TV channel, Abdel Dayem said that the initiative presents artistic content from the archives of the Ministry of Culture and not live shows. The content presented is mostly concerts and plays. The minister of culture also noted that the ministry started taking action since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is noteworthy that the concert of the legendary musician Omar Khairat, which was presented on the official YouTube channel of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture, became a trend on YouTube. The concert achieved nearly half a million views in less than 12 hours, as the views reached 485,708 views.

The Egyptians highly interacted with the Ministry of Culture’s e-initiative "Stay at House ... Culture is between Your Hands", which encourages the public to stay at home as much as possible to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

The ministry's official channel reached 70,000 subscribers in less than 48 hours from the launch of the initiative.

CAIRO – 29 March 2020: The Egyptian health minister on Saturday affirmed that Egypt is prepared for all scenarios, as Egypt has so far reported 576 coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, 36 deaths and 121 recovered cases.

In an interview with Tase’a on state-run Al-Oula TV (Channel 1), Minister Hala Zayed said Egypt is working within the framework of strict precautionary measures to overcome the peak of the novel virus.

“Our capabilities are ready even for the worst scenarios and our hospitals are ready,” said Zayed. “The current measures are vey important, through which we try to have the least number of cases and deaths.”

The minister noted that 70% of the cases that tested positive for the coronavirus were in contact with previously reported cases.

Upper Egypt’s Luxor and Aswan had a very low infection rate during the past week, Zayed said.

As many as 28 cruise ships in Aswan were cleaned and sterilized throughout the current week, the deputy health minister in the city said earlier.

Dozens of positive cases were reported on board a Nile cruiser earlier in March in Aswan, as infection started with a Taiwanese-American tourist.


In remarks to Egypt Today, Deputy Health Minister in Aswan Ehab Hanafi said a number of measures were taken to protect citizens and workers in tourism sectors from the novel coronavirus. He also noted that tourist attractions, including temples, museums and hotels have been the focus of these efforts.

Concerning the governorates of Luxor, Aswan and South Sinai, known to be among the major tourist attractions in Egypt, Zayed earlier in March said some precautionary measures were taken, including banning workers in all tourist facilities from leaving these governorates for 14 days and putting them in quarantine.

The procedures in the three governorates will also include cleaning and sterilizing all tourist facilities as well as governmental and non-governmental facilities, Zayed said, adding that they will be unable to receive any tourists for 14 days starting from the date when the last tourist leaves.

The tourist ships also underwent precautionary measures, Zayed said, including testing all on board for the new virus, including visitors as well as the staff. Those who tested positive were quarantined. Concerning Nile cruisers, all those on board were put in quarantine for 14 days.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: Minister of Civil Aviation Mohamed Manar Enaba communicated with Tunisair to return 37 stranded Egyptians, who had sought the Ministry of Immigration and Expatriate Affairs for help.

A number of those were on business trips while others are working for UNICEF and UN organizations working in Libya so they had to head to Tunisia to get back.

Minister of Immigration and Expatriate Affairs Nabila Makram praised the coordination between both ministries highlighting Enaba’s initiative to fly back dozens of Egyptians from London on March 17 on EgyptAir flight no. 779.

Enaba stated he would contribute in returning stranded Egyptians to assert that all EgyptAir pilots and crews must always be at the service of citizens under any circumstances.

Stranded Egyptians can fill out the following form to receive help:
‏https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfKRxP4OoLfJlbB7xbYX-I2fxFalP4HSgQULhjBtAOiBH-w8Q/viewform
‏‎
They can also email or Whatsapp the ministry: [email protected] - 01069613755/01062437210

And, they can always head to Egypt’s embassies and consulates in the countries they are visiting.

Egypt suspended international flights on March 19 for 15 days but the duration was extended to another 15 days as a protective measure against coronavirus outbreak. Yet, domestic and cargo flights continue operation.

Tourists who had arrived before that date were allowed to continue their programs and leave on previously scheduled dates. On Monday 23, all museums and archaeological sites were shut down so travel agencies had to reschedule their programs accordingly.

Red Sea hotels and resorts were instructed to quarantine workers for 14 days starting the check-out date of the last tourist. In parallel, all tourism establishments would be sterilized during the aviation suspension.

Between March 19-26, EgyptAir operated 33 flights to return stranded Egyptians from different countries.

CAIRO – 29 March 2020: As many as 100,000 families will be added to Takaful and Karama (Solidarity and Dignity) program by the end of the year, the social solidarity minister said. It is a national program designed to protect the poor through income support benefit.

In an interview with Kol Youm on ON E, Minister Neveen al-Qabbaj said there are 3.5 million families included in the Takaful and Karama, which means that 15 million Egyptian citizens benefit from the program.

She added that the budget of the program surged from LE 3.6 billion ($229.25 million) in 2014 to LE 19.3 billion ($1.23 billion) now.



Takaful and Karama (Solidarity and Dignity) conditional and unconditional cash transfer program is one of Egypt’s largest investments in human capital development. It was launched in 2015 with the support of a $400 million World Bank program.
It is implemented by the Ministry of Social Solidarity.

Takaful and Karama provides conditional family income support aimed at increasing food consumption, reducing poverty, while encouraging families to keep children at school and providing them with needed health care.

Along with ensuring vulnerable families receive basic nutrition, the goal is to build the human capital of the next generation and give them a path out of poverty.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli said in July the government will continue to support social protection programs and the subsidy system, while establishing an accurate and sound database to determine the real beneficiaries.

As the threat of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) keeps growing worldwide, imposing restrictions over the freedom of movement, OLX had to adopt a set of procedures that aim at preserving the safety and security of its customers and staff.

OLX’s business model depends mainly on direct interaction between people, therefore, the platform– out of its responsibility towards its community – announces its brand new delivery service and encourage its customers to follow a safety guide to protect against the COVID-19 threat.

This safety guide include a number of tips and procedures for preventing exposures to, and infection with, COVID-19.

These tips include:
- Clean and sanitize cell phones and personal computers at a daily basis.
- Avoid meeting a buyer or a seller if either is feeling certain symptoms such as coughing, shortness of breath and/or high body temperature.
- Sanitize the product before meeting with a buyer.
- Sanitize the purchased product before using.
- Avoid touching your face before washing your hands first.
- Avoid shaking hands.
- Use e-payment services for money transactions.
- Be extra cautious when dealing in cash money.
- Avoid using public transpiration when meeting with a buyer or a seller.
- Use the OLX’s delivery service for more safety and security. 
The delivery service is also one of the services offered by OLX to facilitate the buying and selling process and provide a more comfortable and safe environment for its customers.

The service will be available for all the platform’s categories, including mobile phones, tablets, computers, cameras, kitchen equipment and gadgets, clothes, accessories and baby supplies in addition to auto parts.

The service is currently active in Cairo and Giza and will be expanded to cover all of Egypt’s governorates soon.

Users can enjoy the service by filling an online delivery form with all the data required for the delivery process such as the name, phone number and detailed address of both the seller and the buyer in addition to the product details required for delivery.

The price of the service does not exceed 50 EGP for each shipment; 5 EGP are added to each additional kilogram, provided that the value of the service is added to the price of the product in the form after filling in the data, then the delivery company deducts it from the money collected from the buyer.

The estimated delivery date for buyers is up to four working days and 3-7 working days for sellers starting from the day the buyer receives the shipment, as the shipping company will acquire the money and deliver it to the seller in cash.

General Manager of OLX Egypt Ms. Dina Gobran has stressed that the current difficult circumstances make it imperative for users to follow the safety procedures and enjoy OLX’s distinctive delivery service, which can help them complete their purchases, based on the commitment of OLX to protect and preserve the safety of its customers and employees.

Ms. Gobranfurther pointed out that OLX is working on upgrading its payment options to be easier and more flexible and facilitate operations through its platform, making it more safe and convenient.

Spanning across five continents, around 45 countries, and used by 350 million people every month, OLX build leading destinations forbuying, selling, and exchanging products and services.

OLX provides a platform for individuals locally to buy, sell or exchange commodities, products and services through a number of trademarks including OLX, Avito, Dubizzle, Let Go, Stradia, Storia,

OLX is estimated to facilitate approximately 17 million trades every month, ranging from cars and furniture to electronics and clothing.

OLX Group is powered by a team of 5,000 people, working on 17 brands, from 35 offices across five continents.

The team's mission is to improve people's lives by facilitating trade, profitable deals and creating prosperous opportunities in local communities. OLX is witnessing significant growth in the MENA region in Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and Saudi

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: Famed star Sherine Abdel Wahab became active once again on social media platforms, after having refrained from using social media platforms for over 5 months, precisely after the controversy she raised upon commenting on the Lebanese crisis.

Abdel Wahab posted several tweets on her official account, re-assuring her fans and advising them to stay at home to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I am right here dear fans. It feels really good to be cared for and loved, especially in the midst of the crisis the entire world is going through. I am just like you all, staying at home with my family, and praying that this crisis would soon come to an end.”

“Your concern and care about me gave me a much-needed positive energy in such a global crisis. I want to make you all happy, just like you made me happy. Soon enough, I will surprise you guys with something that is very close to my heart. However, until I do so, I want you all to stay safe, and stay home,” tweeted Abdel Wahab.

In fury, superstar Sherine Abdel Wahab decided to boycott all social media platforms because of what she faced after posting a comment about fires in Lebanon, precisely in October 2019.

“Today I wrote a post about Lebanon because I wanted to be of help. And my voice is all I have. I am not a doctor or an engineer; my voice is the only thing I can offer in this situation. I thought even monetary support would not be much of a help because no matter how much money I donate, it won't be enough compared to the size of the catastrophe. So, I thought I'd rather be positive and do something that can be of value,” commented Abdel Wahab on her official Instagram account at that time.

“When I saw the comments made after the statement I uploaded, I realized I won't please everyone, no matter what I try to do. Rumors follow me everywhere; they said I got divorced, that I had an abortion, and they even claimed I betrayed my country. This is why I decided to boycott all social media platforms so that I won't hurt myself or those who read the comments made by some,” added the singer.

The controversial singer commented on Oct. 16, 2019, on her official Instagram account, “My heart is burning for our beloved Lebanon. In such situations, words are not enough. I am totally ready to stage a concert, where all the profit will be dedicated to those who got harmed by the fires. I call on Prime Minister of Lebanon Saad el-Hariri to organize a concert for me that would be under his patronage.”

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf [Endowment] extended the closure of mosques and Islamic places of worship across the country until further notice, as a protective measure against the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

In a statement issued on Sunday, Minister of Endowment Mukhtar Gomaa said that Friday prayer and other congregational prayers will remain suspended, noting that the ministry is coordinating with the Ministry of Health regarding the health measures.

The minister continued that the violation of the decision of suspension is religiously considered a “sin” that requires accountability.

On March 20, 2020, the ministry closed the mosques and worship places for two weeks, one day after many people attended the Friday prayer, asking people to stay at homes.

Since mid-March, the Egyptian government has taken gradual steps in dealing with the coronavirus spread, starting with suspending schools and universities. It also suspended the international flights to mid April.

Furthermore, a partial curfew was imposed, while all restaurants, cafes, cafeterias, casinos, night clubs, bars, shopping centers (malls), and other local shops shut down completely until April 14, 2020.

The Egyptian Ministry of Health confirmed Saturday 40 new cases of COVID-19, including one Jordanian national, to raise the number of coronavirus patients in Egypt to 576. The death toll rose to 36 people after confirming six more deaths [five Egyptians and one Italian].

"The total number of the recovered people rose to 161 cases so far, while those who have been discharged from the isolation hospitals reached 121," the ministry added.



As yet, the global cases infected with the virus reached 672,086 people and 31,191 deaths were reported, while the recovered cases rose to 143,870. On March 10, 2020, the virus was announced a global pandemic by the World Health Organization.

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazilian rapper MV Bill added his voice to a chorus of criticism of President Jair Bolsonaro for downplaying the gravity of the new coronavirus epidemic in a video clip that urges people to protect themselves.

His rap “Quarantine” recorded in the isolation of his home and posted on social media warns that contagion could be explosive in Brazil’s crowded “favelas” or slums, such as Rio’s City of God where he was born, some with no running water.

Seeing that many Brazilians including their president were not taking the virus seriously motivated his song, he told Reuters by email on Saturday.

“The World Health Organization warned, people paid little heed, head of state downplayed, delayed, they lost time on things that do not matter,” he rapped.

COVID-19 is not “a small cold” as Bolsonaro has claimed and more Brazilians will become infected due to the leader’s “ignorance” and “arrogance,” the singer said.

“Take care, protect yourselves ... there will be no room in the intensive care units,” he warned.

The 46-year-old rapper lives next to City of God, a sprawling complex of slums made famous in a hit 2002 movie of the same name and where the first case of coronavirus in Rio’s favelas was reported last weekend. Armed gangs and militias in the slums have imposed strict curfews and are stopping outsiders from entering to stop the virus spreading.

Confirmed cases in Brazil trebled to 3,417 in the last week, with 92 deaths so far, according to the Health Ministry.

Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s two most populous and most affected states, have shut down non-essential business and public gatherings to slow the spread of the virus, their authorities at odds with Bolsonaro who has called the pandemic a “fantasy” that was exaggerated by the media.

Like U.S. President Donald Trump, the Brazilian president has advocated reopening of activities to get the economy moving while minimizing the need for social distancing urged by public health experts.

MV Bill said Brazil’s favela inhabitants would not be able to quarantine themselves because they had to work for a living and go to get food as no one was going to deliver to the slum.

The economy must continue working for those with precarious incomes. “We do need to think about the economy, but we can’t condemn people to death,” he said.

“What worried me the most in this pandemic is the lack of information of people who still don’t believe how lethal this virus is,” he said by email. “Even with the example of Italy, there are still people who are ignoring it.”

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland’s Krzysztof Penderecki, one of the world’s most celebrated composers, died on Sunday at the age of 86, said state-controlled news agency PAP.

“After a long and serious illness, Krzysztof Penderecki - one of the greatest Polish musicians, a world authority in the field of classical music died,” Poland’s Ministry of Culture said in a tweet.

Penderecki was known for his film scores, including for William Friedkin’s “The Exorcist”, Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” and David Lynch’s “Wild at Heart”, for his Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima and the largely atonal St Luke’s Passion.

He won four Grammy awards for his music, most recently for best choral performance in 2016.

CAIRO – 29 March 2020: The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) decided Sunday to set a daily limit for deposits and cash withdrawals for a temporary period in banks' branches, at LE 10,000 for individuals and LE 50,000 for companies.

"Companies are excluded from this limit to be able to pay the dues of their employees," CBE said in a statement.

It also decided a daily limit for deposits and cash withdrawals from ATM machines at LE 5,000, indicating that the banks sterilize and disinfect those machines periodically.

This comes in the context of the state’s keenness on the health and safety of citizens and reducing the risks of coronavirus (COVID-19) with the aim of ensuring protection and avoiding crowding and gatherings, especially in the periods of withdrawing salaries and pensions.

Egypt’s central bank called on everyone to reduce dealing in banknotes and rely on bank transfers and the use of electronic payment methods such as bank cards and mobile phone wallets that have become available to all.

To clarify, all banks canceled the expenses associated with transfers and the use of online payment methods and tools in order to facilitate the procedures for the citizens.

CAIRO – 29 March 2020: An exceptional third flight operated by the Egyptian flag carrier, EgyptAir, arrived from Kuwait to Cairo International Airport, to transfer the Egyptian nationals stuck in the Arab country over coronavirus.

The plane carried 340 passengers.

The returnees were tested for coronavirus in the airport as they underwent precautionary measures.









The second Egyptian flight took off Friday afternoon from Kuwait International Airport to bring back Egyptians seeking to return home.

The EgyptAir flight, which was operated in coordination with the Egyptian embassy in Kuwait, was carrying 325 Egyptian on board.

On Wednesday, an EgyptAir flight left Cairo for Kuwait to bring back Egyptians stranded there and would like to return home.

EgyptAir company operates a flight daily to bring back all Egyptians in Kuwait who would like to return to Egypt until March 30.

The flag carrier has operated many flights to bring back the Egyptians stuck abroad.

Egypt tests nationals returning from Europe for coronavirus: sources

CAIRO – 27 March 2020: Quarantine authorities in Cairo International Airport on Thursday declared the state of emergency, to test Egyptians coming from Brussels on a flight operated by the Egyptian flag carrier, EgyptAir, for coronavirus, Emirati 24.ae reported.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has assigned the African country’s embassies to prepare lists of the number of Egyptian citizens stuck abroad, Minister of Immigration Nabila Makram said.

In an interview with Ahmed Moussa on Sada Al-Balad, a private TV channel, Makram noted that many Egyptians residing abroad are willing to return, but the authorities give a priority to those who left the country via visitor visas.

The United States currently has the largest number of Egyptian nationals stuck abroad, Makram said, adding that over 1,000 citizens are there.

She noted that a flight will be operated to Washington soon to bring back the Egyptian nationals, while four flights will take off from the United Kingdom.

CAIRO, March 29 (MENA) - The Cabinet media center denied on Sunday reports circulated on some websites and social media about cancelling the second academic term of universities and institutions and declaring the results of the first semester as a final result for the current academic year.

The cabinet contacted the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research that refuted such news as groundless and affirmed that only the the mid-term exams had been cancelled not the final ones.

The academic semester will resume for all the university grades once the suspension period is terminated, the ministry said, adding that the exams will start as of May 20.

The Muslim World League expressed its strong condemnation and denunciation of the attack that targeted a group of soldiers on the island of Boma in the Republic of Chad, causingdozens of dead and wounded.

The Muslim World League also expressed its strong condemnation anddenunciation of the attack that targeted the Nigerian army in the country’s north-east and resulted in dozens of dead and wounded.

The Rabita’s statement issued by His Excellency its SecretaryGeneral and Chairman of the Council of Muslim Scholars Sheikh Dr. Mohammad Bin Abdulkarim Alissa said that these terrorist acts will only intensify the war on terrorism throughconsistency and strength, highlighting the importance of continuing to coordinate efforts to fight this scourgeintellectually and to rout its evil from its roots, along with military confrontation that has so muchembattled terrorism.

He pointed out that terrorism was founded on deviant ideology that spring to lifeintermittently, however, its complete downfall lies in exposing the truth of itsdevious ideas and dismantling all its suspicions, which are based on a systematic misconception in which enabled it to infiltrate some of its targets.

The MWL’s statement mentioned the great role played by the Islamic military alliance to fight terrorism, which encompassed forty-one Muslim countries as active members of this important alliance, in addition to other supportive countries. The statement further praised its four battle-axes; namely military, intellectual and media confrontationsin addition to targeting terrorist financing through effective legislations and stern measures in mutual coordination amongst countries.

The statement also noted the vital efforts made by the international coalition against ISIS, adding that while terrorism sees those efforts tightening the noose around its neck still persists on rearing its ugly head to announce its presence through desperate criminal acts.

CAIRO - 29 March 2020: The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) will bear ATM cash withdrawal fees for pensioners on behalf of the Social Solidarity Ministry for six months as part of efforts to contain the repercussions of coronavirus outbreak.

A reliable source told MENA that the move comes in coordination between the bank and the Social Solidarity Ministry as a precautionary measure against coronavirus outbreak.

It also aims at preserving the safety of pensioners who are holding pension cards not issued from banks, he said.

Six million pensioners will benefit from the CBE decision, the source added.

The other 2 million pensioners, who are holding banking pension cards, are already exempted from ATM fees according to an earlier decision by the central bank.