4 - 10 January 2001
Issue No.515
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 4 - 10 January 2001 Issue No.515 |
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Newsreel
The last trip
THE REMAINS of 33 Egyptians who left for New York on an ill-fated trip were brought back to Cairo on Saturday for burial rites, reports Amira Ibrahim.The plane they had boarded on 31 October 1999 -- EgyptAir flight 990 -- plunged into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after take-off from JFK airport, killing all 217 passengers and crew members.
The remains included those of 20 Egyptian military officers -- out of 33 officers training in the United States -- eight crew members, including co-pilot Gamil El-Batouti, and five other passengers.
Army vehicles picked up the officers' remains at Cairo International Airport and transported them to the Armed Forces cemetery where a private ceremony was held. The somber event was attended by Defence Minister Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi and Chief-of-Staff Gen Magdi Hatata as well as other top military officers and family members.
EgyptAir Chairman Fahim Rayan told reporters that the remains of other victims are expected to arrive in three to four months following the completion of the identification process. To date, only 128 victims have been identified. Eighty-nine of those aboard the plane were Egyptians. Relatives had attended a memorial service in the United States on 31 October, exactly one year after the crash,
Rayan said a final report by the Americans on the cause of the crash was expected by the end of February. "The company intends to respond to the report," said Rayan, but refrained from providing additional information.
The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) had issued a 1,665-page report in August which did not come to specific conclusions on the cause of the crash. American investigators, however, do not appear to have been convinced by Egyptian theories suggesting either a mechanical failure, a missile or radar disturbance as the reason. Egyptian investigators have rejected leaks by NTSB officials accusing co-pilot El-Batouti of downing the plane deliberately.
According to EgyptAir sources, the Egyptians continue to insist on being shown relevant radar images and questioning an air traffic controller on duty at the time of the crash. "There are also two pilots from Germany and Jordan who said they saw missiles while flying in the area at the time of the crash," chief of the Egyptian Pilots Federation Walid Murad said. "They should be questioned."
Outside parliament
THE OUTLAWED Muslim Brotherhood may have won 15 seats in parliament but elsewhere suspected group members continue to be rounded up by police. This week, 20 alleged members were arrested in the oasis governorate of Fayoum on charges of trying to expand the group's activities by recruiting new members.The arrests took place on Saturday at the home of one of the suspects and, according to police sources, LE45,000 was confiscated.
Policemen killed
A SHOOTING incident on Saturday in the southern governorate of Assiut between police and two armed men left two policemen dead. The suspects, who also wounded a third policeman, escaped.It was not clear whether the armed men were linked to militant Islamist groups. They were sought by police on suspicion of carrying illegal firearms.
Root damage
THE RUPTURE of two waste-water pipes has threatened invaluable archaeological sites near the Upper Egyptian city of Luxor, reports Nevine El-Aref. Preliminary investigations showed that the trees which adorn the Corniche encircled the pipes with their roots, breaking them. Officials said to prevent possible water leakage in the future, a two-metre-high limestone fence will be constructed around Luxor Temple, fortifying an existing iron fence.The pipes serve the eastern and western banks of Luxor. Sunday's incident damaged the western side of Luxor Temple and a section of the route leading to Hatchepsute Temple.
Workers built mud-brick and stone barriers which helped lower the level of water near Luxor Temple, site of the remains of Graeco-Roman pillars. Local fire-fighters pumped water out of the temple, draining it directly into the Nile.
Across the river, the archaeological team in charge of Hatchepsute Temple filled the depression caused by the leak with sand and rubble and levelled it with the ground.
Animal cemetery
ONE of the largest cemeteries for sacred animals and birds worshipped by the ancient Egyptians was discovered earlier this week at Abydos. The finding came by chance after a sudden cave-in in Wadi Al-Gabbanat (valley of cemeteries) uncovered an animal and bird cemetery. Among the finds were well-preserved mummies of falcons, the deity of the southern governorate of Sohag in ancient times..Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni told reporters that eight small limestone sarcophagi were also found, the lid of each decorated with blue and red geometrical drawings bearing hieroglyphic texts.
Compiled by Fatemah Farag
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