With infections spiking again despite nearly two years of restrictions, the health crisis increasingly is pitting citizen against citizen — the vaccinated against the unvaccinated. Austria on Friday went a step further, making vaccinations mandatory as of Feb. 1. With a vaccination rate of 67.5%, her nation is now considering mandatory vaccinations for many health professionals. Some 10,000 people, chanting “freedom, freedom,” gathered in Prague this week to protest Czech government restrictions imposed on the unvaccinated. Schoemakers said that while authorities had long baulked at the idea of mandatory vaccinations, the highly infectious delta variant is changing minds.

The bad weather and rainfall wave continues in Egypt's cities for the second day, Alexandria - FILE PHOTOCAIRO - 21 November 2021: Egypt's Health Ministry has declared the highest level of alert nationwide due to bad weather hitting the country, its spokesman Hossam Abdel Ghaffar said on Saturday. In statements to Sada El Balad TV channel, Abdel Gaffar added that no accidents from the bad weather have been reported so far. He added that a crisis room of the ministry follows up on the developments of the weather nationwide. Medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, and blood are available in sufficient amounts at hospitals, he added.

From 2015-2020, Egypt achieved trade surplus in relations with COMESA states that reached in 2020 $1.4 billion , according to a study compiled by the center on the occasion of Egypt's hosting of the 21th COMESA summit on Tuesday. Egypt's exports to COMESA members Libya, Kenya, Sudan, Ethiopia and Tunisia reached $2.3 billion. The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is a free trade area with 21 member states stretching from Tunisia to Eswatini. COMESA was formed in December 1994, replacing a Preferential Trade Area which had existed since 1981. In 2008, COMESA agreed to an expanded free-trade zone including members of two other African trade blocs, the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC).

He continued that Ethiopia owns more than 100 million livestock consuming 84 billion cubic meters of water annually, which is equal to the combined water shares of Egypt and Sudan. Add to this more 74 billion cubic meters for the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, said Abdel-Atti. The per capita share of water in Egypt does not exceed 560 cubic meters annually. “Rainwater on Egypt does not exceed 1.30 billion cubic meters annually. Egypt needs about 114 billion cubic meters annually, with a a gap between the consumption and needs reached about 54 billion cubic meters annually.

Orange Egypt, the fastest network in Egypt, announced the launch of its free internet lines along with special internet bundles “Go Education” for the First Secondary School Students to best serve the students’ needs for using their “educational tablet” that is being provided by the Ministry of Education and Technical Education. The continuation of this initiative comes in line with the state’s efforts to develop the educational system and provide students with the latest technical means that would support them with the new system. As Orange has been investing heavily in its network for the past years, it has been enabled to maintain its position as the fastest network in Egypt, which will eventually be a key factor in facilitating students’ access to educational resources, whether through the Egyptian Knowledge Bank or via Scientific search engine for knowledge bank partners and other educational sites. In cooperation with the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), Orange is to offer discounted bundles of 1000 MB for only 5 EGP exclusively for students who have an Egyptian educational tablet. Ahmed El-Abd, Chief Commercial Officer at Orange Egypt, said that Orange is taking many initiatives and contributions to support the state's efforts in developing education, with its tools and technologies according to the latest standards.”“Orange has always intensified its efforts to serve education in general and youth in particular, as they are considered as the company’s most important strategic focus.” He added.

The Egyptian Health and Population Ministry on Friday reported a significant decrease in new infections and deaths with coronavirus. The ministry reported on Thursday 911 new cases, and 73 deaths, which is the highest death figure since July 2020. The statement reported 719 recoveries. The Health Ministry has stated that official figures likely only represent 10 percent of actual cases. Egypt has thus far succeeded in providing all types of vaccines against the coronavirus, according to Government reports.

CAIRO – 19 November 2021: The Japanese government announced, Friday that it will provide Egypt with AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines via COVAX. The Japanese Embassy in Cairo said that the shipment to Egypt comes within a framework of the friendship relations between the two countries as it will be the first Japanese shipment to Africa. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on Tuesday issued directives for expanding COVID-19 vaccination campaigns for citizens and facilitating relevant procedures. Presidential Adviser for Health Affairs Mohamed Awad Tag el Din said on Wednesday that Egypt currently has a large number of COVID-19 vaccines, noting that the Egyptian government has allocated all the necessary funds to obtain these vaccines. He stressed that all types of vaccines have been provided in Egypt.

ANKARA, Nov 18 (Reuters) – Turkish opposition leaders called for immediate early elections on Thursday after the lira plunged 6% to new lows following the central bank’s decision to cut interest rates amid pressure from President Tayyip Erdogan. Election Immediately,” tweeted Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition CHP. “Dollar 11 Lira” and “Election Immediately” were the top two trending topics on Twitter, as criticism against Erdogan mounted on social media. Opposition leaders have ramped up calls for early elections amid the economic woes, while Turks have cited economic mismanagement in opinion polls that show support for Erdogan, who has been in power for nearly 20 years, at multiyear lows. read moreKilicdaroglu later told broadcaster Haberturk that Erdogan’s call for lower rates to boost exports and investments showed he was “completely detached from reality”, adding the public wanted early elections.

CAIRO – 19 November 2021: The foreign ministers of Egypt, Greece, Cyprus and France asserted the importance of giving more attention to pushing forward regional and international peace and stability as well as inclusive economic development. In the final statement of the quadrilateral meeting for the foreign ministers of Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, and France held in Athens, the ministers hailed the deeply-rooted relations between their countries and called for continuing cooperation. According to the statement, the minsters referred to the ‘excellent relations’ among all four countries, in full accordance with International Law and the Law of the Sea. The talks came on the sidelines of Shoukry's meeting with the foreign ministers of Greece, France, and Cyprus in Athens. A Quadrilateral meeting for the foreign ministers of Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, and France kicked off on Friday, a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry read.

During a colonoscopy examination, Biden will be anesthetized and as in past practice the vice president will assume power, which includes control over the US armed forces and the nuclear weapons arsenal. "President Biden will transfer power to the vice president for the brief period of time when he is under anesthesia. The vice president will work from her office in the West Wing during this time," Press Secretary Jen Psaki said. Biden pledged before his election a year ago to be "totally transparent" with voters about all aspects of his health. Earlier this week, Biden signed into law another package to fund the biggest national infrastructure revamp in more than half a century.

CAIRO-19 November 2021: Mikel Arteta, Arsenal manager, stated that it is not the time to discuss the situation of Mohamed Elneny, the club's midfielder, as he moves into the final six months of his contract. I will not be discussing the individual fates of the players as it’s not the time to do so.” Arteta said. According to Elneny's agent, Alaa Nazmy, the negotiations between the player and his club to extend his contract were shelved following the player's comments on one of the global events that took place last May. Nazmy said "We were in negotiations with the club between March and May and we were close to reaching an agreement but everything stopped following Elneny's comments on a global event last May." The midfielder featured in two matches with Arsenal in the Premier League this season.

CAIRO - 19 November 2021: Egypt will host the 21st Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Summit scheduled to be held in the new administrative capital on Tuesday, with the participation of representatives of African member states, said the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry in a statement on Friday. The summit will be attended by a number of heads of African economic communities, whether through actual attendance or virtual participation. During the summit, Egypt is scheduled to receive the presidency of the COMESA. The last time when Egypt assumed the presidency of the community was in 2001. The Minister of Trade will speak Egypt’s vision to achieve economic integration among member states under Egypt's presidency of the COMESA community.

Egypt’s Ministry of Health and Population on Thursday reported 911 new coronavirus cases, 73 deaths, and 419 recoveries. A total of 347,719 cases have been reported in Egypt, this includes 19,780 deaths and 289,952 recoveries. Moreover, the Health Ministry has stated that official figures most likely only represent 10 percent of actual cases. Egypt has administrated a total of 35 million coronavirus vaccine doses, and spent a total of US$400 million on vaccination efforts, according to government officials. Egypt’s vaccination campaign began in January with priority groups and later expanded to university students.

First Lady Intissar al-Sisi and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall at Al Itihadiyah presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt on November 18, 2021. Press PhotoCAIRO – 18 November 2021: First Lady Intissar al-Sisi and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall met Thursday at Al Itihadiyah presidential palace having a conversation on women empowerment, and steps made by the state to expand their role at the government, the parliament, and qualifying a new generation of young Egyptian women. President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, Prince Charles of Wales, First Lady Intissar al-Sisi and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall pose for a photo at Al Itihadiyah Presidential Palace in Cairo on November 18, 2021. Press PhotoPrince Charles of Wales and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall are holding a two-day visit to Egypt. Later, they have been received by President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and First Lady Intissar al-Sisi at Al Itihadiyah Presidential Palace.

VIENNA, Nov 17 (Reuters) – The U.N. nuclear watchdog on Wednesday issued reports detailing its conflicts with Iran, from rough treatment of its inspectors to re-installing cameras it deems “essential” for the revival of Tehran’s nuclear deal. That deal with major powers lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activities. One of four IAEA cameras there was destroyed. TESA Karaj was one of several sites where Iran agreed on Sept. 12 to grant IAEA inspectors access to service monitoring equipment and replace memory cards due to fill up with camera footage and other data. The other report said that Iranian security guards continued to perform “excessively invasive physical searches” of IAEA inspectors.