Egypt's tourism not affected by coronavirus, no sites closed: minister

Tourism in Egypt has not been affected by COVID-19 and no tourist sites have been closed over the novel coronavirus, the Egyptian tourism and antiquities minister said Tuesday.

"In February 2020 during the virus crisis, nearly 900,000 tourists visited Egypt, marking a four-percent increase compared with February 2019," Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled al-Anany told a joint press conference with the ministers of health and information.

He noted that at least 210,000 tourists visited Egypt in the first week of March 2020, describing the number as "a normal rate."

"The archeological sites are open for visitors on a daily basis and none of them has been shut down," the minister said, refuting claims of closing some sites over COVID-19 concerns.

Anany noted that his ministry coordinates closely with the health ministry and other authorities concerned to safeguard Egyptians working in the tourism field as well as foreign and local visitors.

"It is a crisis that the world is going through and I hope it will soon come to an end in the whole world," said the Egyptian tourism and antiquities minister.

Egypt has recently discovered about 45 coronavirus cases onboard a Nile River cruise ship, raising the number of COVID-19 cases detected in the country to 59.

Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed announced on Tuesday that 26 cases have recovered and been tested negative for the virus.

The COVID-19 has infected more than 117,000 people worldwide over the past couple of months, some 4,000 of whom died.