Gov’t calls on citizens to stop smoking hookah to combat Covid-19

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Mon, 16 Mar 2020 - 05:51 GMT

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Mon, 16 Mar 2020 - 05:51 GMT

Smoking paraphernalia is seen during the "Expocannabis" fair on its opening day in Leganes, outside Madrid, January 26, 2007. REUTERS/Susana Vera.

Smoking paraphernalia is seen during the "Expocannabis" fair on its opening day in Leganes, outside Madrid, January 26, 2007. REUTERS/Susana Vera.

CAIRO – 16 March 2020: Minister of Local Development called on citizens to abide by the anti-Covid-19 precautionary and preventive measures recently announced by the government regarding the risks of smoking hookah “Shisha” at cafes and restaurants.

The World Health Organization has assured that hookah transfers coronavirus, and that tobacco negatively affects immunity, reducing the body’s ability to combat the virus.

The ministry’s statement said that the public interest requires taking precautionary measures, including banning hookah to prevent the spread of the virus.

The ministry added that it has started coordinating with governorates and concerned bodies to take the necessary measures in this regard.

Amid fears of coronavirus (covid 19) outbreak in Egypt, some governmental and judicial institutions stopped using the fingerprint biometric attendance systems nationwide.

Egyptian Attorney General Hamada al-Sawy suspended the fingerprint biometric attendance system for judges and public servants in the prosecution offices all over the country until further notice, as a preventive measure against the virus.

As per the decision, only investigators, accused people, lawyers and witnesses should be present during the investigations; relatives are not allowed to attend at the prosecution offices. Face masks should be worn by employees when they deal with foreigners, the decision stipulated.

Meanwhile, some national and private banks are studying to replace the system of fingerprint biometrics with biometric cards, Masrawy reported a banking source on Sunday, explaining that some banks already contracted with cleaning firms to disinfect the ATMs on a daily basis.

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