Egyptian court orders suspension of ride-hailing apps Uber, Careem

On Tuesday, a court in Egypt ordered the suspension of licenses of ride-hailing apps Uber and Careem, according to Reuters. 

The decision came after 42 local taxi drivers filed a lawsuit in 2017, in which they claimed both companies had been violating Egypt's traffic laws by using private cars for commercial purposes.

The lawsuits also claimed that Uber was registered as a call center, whereas Careem was reportedly registered as an internet company. 

Khaled al-Gammal, the drivers' lawyer, told Reuters that an Egyptian court "suspended the two companies’ licenses, banned their apps and suspended the use of private cars by the two ride-hailing services."

The court ruling was "effective immediately," however both companies have a 60-day window to appeal.

According to Bloomberg, the ride-sharing companies said they would continue operations in Egypt, pending reconsideration of the court ruling ordering them to halt operations.

According to Reuters, Uber said it intends to appeal any court ruling made to suspend its operations or licenses in Egypt.

"We will do all we can to ensure millions of Egyptians can continue to enjoy the benefits of on-demand transportation," an Uber official said, according to Reuters.

"We are fully committed to working with the entire sector – including taxis – to improve mobility in Egypt together. We will appeal this decision, and continue to be available in Egypt in the meantime."

Careem had not yet received any official request to put a halt to its operations and continued offering rides as usual. 

With 157,000 Uber drivers in Egypt, it's considered to be the ride-hailing company's largest market in the MENA region.

According to Reuters, 4 million users have used Uber since its launch in 2014. Uber has partnered with local initiatives to improve its service over the years. In 2015, Uber partnered up with HarassMap, a local initiative working to end sexual harassment in Egypt.

"This partnership will modify and strengthen our driver screening and training process with the aim of transforming our workplace into a zero tolerance towards sexual harassment area, or for lack of a better term, a 'safe area,'" Uber said in a statement.

In 2016, Egypt's Cabinet approved a bill to regulate the ride-sharing industry in the country, demanding the companies pay taxes and insurance subscriptions. 

However, the bill is yet to be passed before Parliament.

Earlier this year, Uber temporarily suspended its operations in Casablanca, Morocco, due to lack of "clarity about integrating applications like Uber into the existing transport model," according to Quartz.

Casablanca is the only Moroccan city where Uber operates. 

At the time, Uber claimed it had been forced to suspend operations and said it will resume its activities in Morocco "as soon as new rules are in place."