Egyptians will be pinned to their television screens this evening, as their national team takes on Cameroon in the final of the African Cup of Nations. Celebrations are sure to be raucous in the football-loving nation should they take the trophy for a record-breaking eighth time.
However, those Egyptians living in Kuwait will have to keep their parties under wraps, after the Interior Ministry reissued a warning against fans celebrating in their cars, Huffpost Arabi reports.
The edict was initially released following the chaos caused by celebrations of the Pharaohs’ 1-0 victory over Morocco last week, which put them into the semi-finals
In a statement, the Kuwaiti authorities indicated that they would deal harshly with any foreign resident who took part in celebrations which restricted traffic flow, or “offended public decency”.
Convoys of cars celebrating marriages or sporting victories are a well-known sight in the Middle East. However, in this case Kuwait has laid down the law, which stipulates that “private processions” of vehicles are not permissible, unless prior permission has been gained from the authorities.
Back in Egypt, excited fans have taken to social media ahead of tonight’s final, which is a re-run of the 2008 pairing, using the hashtag “Oh God, let us win the cup!”
#يارب_الكاس_لمصر
— TaRek AdEL (@tarekadel10101) February 4, 2017
Yes we can pic.twitter.com/X4XvmqlIf1
#يارب_الكاس_لمصر
— مصرية وافتخر (@hanaaahmed446) February 4, 2017
We can do it pic.twitter.com/h036t2D8NQ
Let's do it again #مصر_الكاميرون #يارب_الكاس_لمصر pic.twitter.com/b9swg9XtRy
— Mahmoud (@Mahmoud_khallaf) February 5, 2017
Meanwhile, Egyptians in Kuwait, who represent the largest Arab expat community in the Gulf state, will have to find more tame ways to express their excitement.
RA
