Egyptian Looters Destroy 2,000-Year-Old Mummies, Steal Tutankhamun’s Treasures

Mtoday news

Cairo, Jan 30 : The army was on guard at Egypt’s most popular tourist sites on Saturay  night after two 2,000-year-old mummies in the country’s national museum were destroyed by looters attempting to steal the treasures of King Tutankhamun, reports Daily Mail, London.

 

Soldiers were positioned at the Pyramids and Cairo’s Egyptian Museum – the holding place for Tutankhamun’s priceless golden mask and other artifacts – on the fifth day of anti-government demonstrations in the country’s capital.As trouble continues to spread throughout Egypt, tourist sites including the Pyramids have been closed The move to protect the ancient site comes after looters attempted to mummies and treasures

The military deployment came amid an almost complete collapse of law and order, with the violence escalating outside the capital. Residents in Alexandria, north-west of Cairo, were forced to stand guard outside their homes armed with sticks as gangs rampaged through the city.The gold mask of ancient pharaoh king Tutankhamen seen at the Egyptian museum

 

Meanwhile, 30,000 British tourists stranded in Egypt, mostly in the Red Sea resorts, were told by the Foreign Office to stay clear of the nationwide violence and abide by a new 4pm curfew ordered by President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday.The British Government also advised against all non-essential travel to Cairo, Luxor, Alexandria and Suez as all flights from the UK to Egypt were cancelled.

One BMI flight en route to Cairo from London was turned around at 30,000ft as the situation worsened.British Airways chartered an extra aircraft to rescue stranded tourists from Cairo as its airport witnessed chaotic scenes, with tourists desperately trying to flee the violence. Angry demonstrators and army tanks stand off against each other near Cairo’s Egyptian Museum.

 

Nine men broke into the Egyptian Museum in the early hours of Saturday taking advantage of damage caused to the building’s security by a fire in the neighbouring headquarters of the ruling National Democratic Party. They were caught by police and a crowd of civilians while carrying out the skulls of two mummies and two statues estimated to be more than 2,000 years old.

Law and order has completely broken down, as this dancing youth proves Hundreds of demonstrators climb on top of armoured vehicles in Tahrir Square. The government had shut down the internet and mobile phone system to prevent protests

The headquarters of the ruling National Democratic Party was badly burned One statue, believed to be of Tutankhamun, was broken into two pieces by the thieves, although officials said they hoped to be able to repair it.

 

Zahi Hawass, chairman of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said: ‘They tried to attack and rob from the showcases of King Tut, but they failed. These people are criminals, they are not true Egyptians. The nine men were caught carrying skulls and two statues, one of which was broken. But the army are now guarding the museum and all the museums are now safe.’

The Egyptian military closed tourist access to the Pyramids as tanks and armoured personnel carriers sealed off the site at Giza, normally packed with visitors.

Clashes have also occurred in Suez, and eight prisoners were killed during an attempted mass escape from Abu Zaabal prison, north-east of Cairo.