Cultural heritage

Egypt caves to popular pressure, displays controversial French statue

After years of tension and popular pressure, Egypt has decided to move the statue of French engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps, who was behind ​​digging the Suez Canal, from the Port Said governorate to exhibit it at the headquarters of the Suez Canal International Museum in Ismailia governorate.

Egypt

Palestinian man builds vintage car in his own garage

A Palestinian owner of a car showroom in the West Bank manufactured his own vintage vehicle in a small workshop during the coronavirus lockdown.

Originals

Egypt’s ban of Jewish festival raises controversy

Egypt’s Supreme Administrative Court upheld a previous ruling prohibiting the celebration of the birth of a Jewish rabbi, which attracts hundreds of Israelis every year, in a move that may in part reflect popular rejection of normalization with Israel.

Egypt

Syriac manuscripts recovered from suspected Islamic State fighter in Mosul

Stolen manuscripts resurface as Iraqi security forces engage Islamic State cells, but safety concerns for minority communities still loom large.

Iraq

Cairo’s ancient Bassatine Jewish cemetery completes first-of-its-kind restoration project

The restoration project of Cairo’s Bassatine Jewish Cemetery, believed to be the second-oldest in the world, mainly aims at attracting tourism while at the same time shedding light on Egypt’s dwindling Jewish community.

Originals

Erdogan converts another historic church into a mosque

The centuries-old Chora church, which has served as a museum since 1945, will soon be open to Muslim worship.

Turkey

Egypt shows interest in Nubian community after years of marginalization

The marginalized Nubian community is back at the forefront in Egypt with a boat race festival to preserve Nubian heritage, held for a second time in Aswan governorate.

Egypt

After 30-year hiatus, French archaeological mission returns to Iraq

The French excavation mission succeeded in uncovering a network of large water channels, a port, houses and a large temple, as well as clay tablets in the city of Larsa, a capital city in the Babylonian era.

Iraq

Elon Musk tweets that aliens built Egypt's pyramids

The conspiracy theory that aliens built the marvels is unfortunately common.

Egypt

French statue considered offensive by Egyptians back in spotlight

Egyptian archaeologists are taking advantage of the global anti-racism movement to renew their calls on the French government to remove a statue of Jean Francois Champollion, who deciphered hieroglyphics, kneeling on the head of a Pharaonic king.

Egypt

Will Covid-19 put an end to hookah culture in Egypt?

Once a symbol of Egypt’s cafes and mentioned through history, hookahs are slowly disappearing from society amid the closure of cafes across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Egypt

Ankara unfolds Hagia Sophia card against COVID-19 crisis

Erdogan’s government has signaled it could consider turning the Hagia Sophia Museum into a mosque as part of religious messages aimed at keeping its voter base intact under the strain of economic turmoil, made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turkey