Egypt to repatriate citizens stuck in Morocco

Egypt’s national airline will soon fly Egyptians stuck in Morocco back home.

A Jan. 19 EgyptAir flight is set to repatriate Egyptian citizens who are stuck in Morocco due to the North African country’s border closure. Some Moroccan citizens and other foreigners will also be aboard the flight, the Egyptian state-owned news outlet Al-Ahram reported today.

Morocco closed its borders in November of last year due to rising COVID-19 cases. The omicron variant has led to more coronavirus infections throughout the world. All passenger flights in and out of Morocco were suspended, and the ban will remain in effect until at least Jan. 31.

The flight suspension has hurt Morocco’s tourism industry. On Jan. 4, hundreds of tourism industry workers protested in the capital Rabat, saying their companies are facing bankruptcy.

COVID-19 cases are increasing in Morocco. The country of 36 million is currently averaging around 6,000 cases a day. The daily death rate is about 10, down from the historic high of more than 100 over the summer, according to data from Reuters.