Egypt shuts down theaters, cinemas amid fears of Coronavirus outbreak

CAIRO- 19 March 2020: Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly directed the suspension of all activities in cinemas and theaters as a precautionary measure that comes within the framework of the state's comprehensive plan to deal with the emerging Coronavirus.

"The decision is wise and we just have to abide by the instructions under the current circumstances to save the lives of citizens," Head of Actors Syndicate Ashraf Zaki.

"Certainly, this will cause huge losses, but the whole world isspendingbillions to confront the virus;it is an emergency that we hope will end soon," he added.

On his part, Producer Mohsen Alam El-Din, a member of the Egyptian Chamber of Film Industry, said, "We are committed to implementing the state’s instructions, and everyone must abide by these procedures because the whole world is going througha critical circumstance."