Egypt will reopen selected tourist destinations from July 1 to international tourists less affected by the Coronavirus infection. The Egyptian cabinet took this decision on Thursday. The government hopes that a large number of tourists will visit these tourist destinations located in popular but remote areas. Tourist destinations that have been decided to reopen include the southern part of the Sinai Peninsula, the Red Sea resort area at Hurghada and Marsa Alam.
The government has taken this decision at a time when the number of infected is increasing in big cities including the country’s capital Cairo and people say that infected people are not getting beds in hospitals. The Health Ministry has reported that 39,000 cases of coronavirus infection have been reported in the country, of which 1,377 people have died.
Cabinet spokesman Nader Saad said that although the Cairo airport would be closed for international commercial flights for the present time, public parks and beaches would also remain closed to the people till the end of June.
Egypt has cut curfew hours slightly, despite rapidly increasing cases of infection. The curfew will remain from 8 am to 4 pm from Sunday. Tourism accounts for 12 percent of Egypt’s GDP. The government is in danger of the economy collapsing due to the lockdown.
