Ahmed Nazif, the Prime Minister, said Egypt is "completely free" of plague, which has spread outside Egypt's western borders. The PM stressed that he is continuously following the situation. Magdi Radhi, the Cabinet's Spokesman, said the Minister of Health Hatem el-Gabali filed a report yesterday to Nazif to inform him of the strict measures taken by the Ministry of Health to prevent this disease from entering Egypt. A state of emergency was declared along the Egyptian-Libyan borders, in anticipation of any developments.
In remarks yesterday, Radhi said: "The Prime Minister is continuously following the situation through coordination with the ministries and bodies concerned." El-Gabali phoned his Libyan counterpart Mohamed el-Hegazi yesterday for information on the latest developments. Speaking to Al-Masry Al-Youm, el-Gabali said: "The Libyan Minister told me that the plague has one killed person and infected twelve others. Seven cases have recovered whilst four others are still under treatment."
Egypt should be cautious, el-Gabali said, adding: "There is contact with the Egyptian armed forces, which have started to help us spray wide areas along the borders." A preventive medicine committee from the Ministry of Health has been sent to the Egyptian-Libyan borders to work with the committee combating swine flu, he added.
On the other hand, the Bedouins of Sallum live in absolute terror due to the spread of mice called "Ganatish", which may transmit the plague. These mice spread between the Egyptian Sallum city and the Libyan Mossaed city. They multiply in the stores of goods transported between Egypt and Libya.
The Ministry of Health has stepped up the presence of medical teams in Sallum outlet, where a medical team has already arrived to follow up the measures taken in order to combat the plague.
