Newsreel

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History stolen

DECORATIVE parts belonging to the Mangek Al-Yousofi Mosque have been stolen. Unidentified thieves took the ivory and ebony parts of the minbar as well as its two handles.

The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) is taking legal action against the security guard for leaving the site unattended. Mohsen Sayed, director-general of the SCA Islamic and Coptic department, said this was not the first time the guard had left his post despite being cautioned.

Meanwhile, recent press reports concerning the discovery of a statue and temple of King Ramses II in the Ain Shams area have been described as unfounded. The statue and temple are not a new discovery as announced by the SCA but were in fact discovered in 2006 by an Egyptian excavation team. At the time, SCA Secretary-General Zahi Hawass visited the site along with a group of Egyptian and foreign journalists and photographers. The monuments are currently undergoing restoration and are being documented.

Coptic conference

THE NINTH International Congress for Coptic Studies is being held in Cairo from 14 to 20 September. Held under the auspicious of Pope Shenouda III, and organised by the St Mark Foundation for Coptic History Studies, the event is held every four years. Cairo was chosen for this year's congress since 2008 marks the centennial of the Coptic Museum.

Shenouda is currently in the US undergoing physiotherapy. He addressed the opening ceremony via a pre-taped message on a projector screen.

The president of the congress, Theofried Baumeister, then reviewed the history of the International Association for Coptic Studies (IACS). Baumeister said the IACS was founded on the occasion of the first International Congress of Coptology in Cairo held from 11-17 December 1976. The theme then was a colloquium on the future of Coptic studies.

The IACS is a non-profit organisation designed to encourage and contribute to the progress of all aspects of Coptic studies. It promotes international cooperation among individuals as well as among organisations and institutions. Its work includes the dissemination of information about work in progress, organising periodic congresses on Coptic studies, facilitating full access to and the rapid publication of source materials, and identifying priorities for research.

At the congress, the David Choir ensemble performed several Coptic hymns.

Road deaths

TWELVE people were killed, including seven tourists, after a head-on collision between a tourist bus and a truck on the Sharm El-Sheikh-Cairo road on Monday. The tourists were from Germany, Poland, Russia, France and the Ukraine.

Thirty-three people were injured in the accident, which happened 17 kilometres north of the town of Ras Sedr during a day trip from Sharm El-Sheikh to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Most of the injured were taken to Ras Sedr Hospital while seven of the more serious cases were taken to Suez.

A preliminary investigation showed the accident occurred when the speeding truck burst a tire and its driver lost control and crashed into the bus.