Egyptian ecommerce blackout costs the country hundreds of thousands in sales

Last weekend, the Egyptian government shut off internet access to the country in the wake of escalating violence and protests centered around ending the 30-year reign of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. The aim of the internet blackout was to disrupt citizens' ability to organize against the government, but it had the unfortunate side effect of shutting down ecommerce activity in the country.

The blackout caused the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in online sales, but companies like Jabbar Internet Group and Souk.com are more concerned with the safety of their teams and customers, reports The Next Web.

"We are completely focused at this stage on the safety of our team," said Samih Toukan, CEO of Jabbar Internet Group, the holding company of Souq.com and other online sites. "We pray for the Egyptian people and hope things will be stable soon and Egypt will prosper in the future and business will grow and jobs will be created. That's our mission at Souq, to allow people to transact and trade and create jobs."

According to Yahoo News, 82-year-old Mubarak has not been seen in public or heard from since the protests began Tuesday. Tens of thousands of Egyptian citizens have taken to marching on the streets in protest, while the U.S. Embassy has advised that all Americans evacuate the nation immediately.