Mass prayers without audience POPE Tawadros II of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Alexandria headed the Palm Sunday Mass without an audience as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. A few priests, monks and deacons participated in the mass at the Saint Bishoy Monastery in Wadi Al-Natroun followed by prayers. The pope will perform next week's Easter Mass prayers at the same monastery, also without onlookers. A spokesperson for the Coptic Orthodox Church's official page said Christian TV channels will broadcast the prayers live. Pope Tawadros II called on Copts to remotely participate in the prayers. Last month, the Coptic Orthodox Church closed all churches and stopped ritual services, masses and gatherings as part of the precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Courts still adjourned THE JUSTICE Ministry announced on Sunday that court sessions would continue to be suspended in the governorates until 23 April as part of the precautionary measures taken by the cabinet to combat the coronavirus. Administrative work will continue but with the least number of employees. The ministry said the suspension would include first degree and appeals courts. The decision was intended to reduce overcrowding in courthouses which usually witness large public gatherings. Egypt has taken a series of measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus, imposing a night-time curfew, suspending flights, banning large public gatherings and halting classes at schools and universities. On Sunday, Egypt had registered 2,065 coronavirus cases, including 159 deaths.
Sale delayed THE CORONAVIRUS has forced the postponement of Egypt's plans to sell a minority stake in the state-owned Banque du Caire in an initial public offering that had been scheduled for mid-April. Tarek Fayed, the bank's chairman, on Sunday cited the impact of the virus on both local and global stock markets as the reason behind the delay. He provided no further details. Talking to Reuters last month, Fayed stressed that the plan to sell a $500 million stake will not stop, depending on investors' interest in the deal. Offering a stake of the bank in the stock exchange would be the country's biggest sale of state assets since 2006. The bank is part of a privatisation programme involving a long list of state companies. *A version of this article appears in print in the 16 April, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
