Mideast intensifies anti-smoking drive

CAIRO – The Middle East, long associated with the ubiquitous waterpipe, is intensifying an anti-smoking drive as several Arab countries ban the practice in public places, even if success looks difficult.

From Beirut to Cairo, cigarettes are smoked everywhere, not just in cafes and restaurants, but in banks, ministries and even hospitals.

Egypt, the most populous nation in the Arab world and the heaviest smoker, announced on Thursday its intention to make the Mediterranean city of Alexandria the country’s “first smoke-free city.”

But the health ministry did not say how it planned to achieve this goal.

An existing law that prohibits smoking in public places is frequently flouted – notably by civil servants and police.

Nearly 40 percent of Egyptian men smoke, the vast majority of them throughout the day, according to a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in January.

On top of this, at least 70 percent of those questioned for the survey said they were subjected to passive smoking at home or in the workplace.

Jordan, Syria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are also looking to kick the habit, having all passed anti-smoking legislation in recent months.

In January, the Emirati president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, ordered a ban “on smoking in public transport and closed public places.”

Within the UAE, Dubai took the lead, introducing smoking restrictions as far back as 2007.

The official WAM news agency has admitted the new law is not being implemented everywhere, but insisted that “state-owned buildings such as schools, universities, hospitals, theaters and gyms will have to conform to the total smoking ban in the very near future.”