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Sharp Spike in COVID-19 Cases Reported in Gulf, Iran, Egypt

Edward Yeranian

   CAIRO - Arab media is reporting a sharp increase in the number of
   COVID-19 cases across the Gulf, Iran and Egypt, as countries begin
   lifting curfews and other restrictions that were imposed to curb the
   spread of the coronavirus.
   Despite a recent uptick in the number of COVID-19 cases and fatalities
   in Egypt, the country's sports minister, Ashraf Sobhi, told a press
   conference Monday that soccer players would be allowed to resume
   training June 20, and league matches would resume next month. Sports
   clubs are also expected to begin reopening during the next 10 days.
   The sports minister's optimism was tempered somewhat by the daily
   health ministry report that almost 100 people had died from the virus
   on Monday and that nearly 1,700 new cases had been registered. Health
   Minister Hala Zayed attributed the rise to older people contracting the
   virus.
   She argued that the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths has risen
   mostly due to older people with chronic illnesses not seeking proper
   medical care during the latter part of the holy month of Ramadan.
   Egyptian media also reported that the country's Islamic scholars at
   Azhar University have issued a fatwah prohibiting anyone from gathering
   up used surgical masks to wash and resell. It was not clear if the
   practice was adding to the number of coronavirus infections.
   The number of reported COVID-19 cases in Iran has also increased in
   recent days, according to the country's Health Ministry spokeswoman Dr.
   Sima Sadat Lari. She indicated that nearly 200,000 Iranians have been
   infected with the coronavirus to date, but that over 150,000 have
   recovered.

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