Egypt Denies Underreporting COVID-19 Deaths

Arab World

November 28th, 11:45am

Cairo - Walid Abdulrahman

FILE PHOTO: A woman wears a protective mask following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) while riding a metro on a line Shubra al-Khaimah to Tahrir Square, on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt March 10, 2020. REUTERS/Rania Goma

Egypt confirmed that government hospitals did not underreport deaths caused by the coronavirus outbreak as it deals with a second wave of the disease. The government’s media office confirmed that the state is dealing with the virus situation with total transparency and in coordination with the ministry of health and the World Health Organization. This came in response to reports by media sites claiming that the government was hiding the true scale of virus deaths. The government called on media platforms to ascertain their information’s validity and contact the concerned officials before publishing news to avoid misinforming and terrifying citizens. According to the Ministry of Health, Egypt recorded 114,475 virus cases and 102,268 recoveries, while up to 6,596 have died. Meanwhile, Egypt’s Dar El-Fatwa issued a statement prohibiting disposing used masks on the streets to prevent the spread of the virus. For his part, Advisor to the President of the Republic for Affairs Health and Prevention Dr. Mohamed Awad Tajuddin emphasized the urgency of "continued adherence to the precautionary measures." He said adhering to the recommended measures is the only way to protect everyone from the virus for the meantime.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2652106/egypt-denies-underreporting-covid-19-deaths