Egypt registers first coronavirus case in an Egyptian national returning from Europe
Thursday March 05 2020
Lebanese workers spray disinfectant in classrooms and halls of a school in the coastal town of Rmeileh, 35 kilometres south of the capital Beirut, on February 2, 2020, in an effort to prevent a novel coronavirus outbreak in the country. PHOTO | MAHMOUD ZAYYAT | AFP
Egypt registered the first coronavirus case in an Egyptian national who had returned from Serbia via France, a joint statement from the health ministry and the World Health Organization said on Thursday.
The North African country registered two cases before in foreigners, one of whom recovered and was released from quarantine.
The Egyptian man, 44, who spent 12 hours in France during his journey, didn’t show any symptoms upon his arrival but after few days he went to a hospital following the appearance of some minor symptoms, the statement said.
Laboratory tests proved positive for the coronavirus on Thursday and the man is now on his way to a quarantine hospital for treatment, it added.
The health ministry said on Wednesday it had tested 1904 suspected coronavirus cases but all of them proved negative.