A massive winter storm hit Cairo and the Middle East with local news reports claiming it was Egypt's capital's first snowfall in 112 years.
Camels walk on snow-blanketed fields near a pyramid in Cairo. |
The Middle East has been hit by a fierce winter storm, with temperatures in Egypt plummeting over the past two days as torrential rain also lashed parts of the country.
"It is the first time in very many years" that it has snowed in the suburbs of Cairo, said Ali Abdelazim, an official at the meteorological center.
"The whole garden was white," Karim Kheirat told AFP by telephone from the new town of Medinati northeast of the capital.
"It's the first time in my life that I have seen it like this."
Other suburbs of the capital also saw light snow showers, residents said.
The Sinai Peninsula submerged in thick snow. |
Middle East countries, including the Holy Land of Israel, were hit by the winter storm Friday. |
In the Sinai Peninsula, the storm deposited a blanket of snow several centimeters thick in the mountainous area around Saint Catherine's monastery for the first time in decades.
Mokhtar Hussein, who lives in the area, said he had not left his house since Thursday because of the weather.
"We aren't leaving the house at all because the whole town is covered in snow," he said.
On the Mediterranean coast, gardens, streets and houses in the town of Ras al-Bar were covered by a layer of white after heavy snow, resident Rania al-Mubashir said.
The northern coastal city of Alexandria only received light snowfall, but authorities shut the port for the third consecutive day because of the bad weather and strong winds.--Source: AFP