Egypt
BBC News (narrated by Christian Fraser)
- Illegal Road On Antiquities Land Near Abusir
Cairo/Giza Daily Photo (Maryanne Stroud Gabbani) Maryanne follows this story with the better news that he local families met the other night and told the members who built the road that they could not quarry in this area, but it still makes one wonder...
- Site Management: Giza
drhawass.com (Zahi Hawass) The site of Giza is one of the most visited sites in Egypt. Everyone who comes to Egypt visits the great pyramids that dominate the landscape here. In the past, the site was crowded, cars were everywhere and also people selling...
- Travel: Cairo In The Fast Lane
South African (Nick Boulos) An evocative account of a day in Cairo. Very few people can afford a new car and even fewer can afford insurance. As a result, disputes over collisions are resolved at the roadside and generally involve lots of shouting and...
- World Heritage Sites: Threat Or Promise?
http://tinyurl.com/yxnyep (arabnews.com) An article about the pros and cons of establishing a site as a World Heritage Site. It is specific to three sites recently nominated in Saudi Arabia, but puts them into the context of more general issues: "Automobile...
- Two New Sarchophagi
http://tinyurl.com/e9n6f (iol.co.za)"Two ancient Egyptian sarcophagi dating back 3 000 years were discovered by highway workers south of Cairo, it was reported in Egypt on Monday.According to the Al-Ahram daily, workers along the southern Tora-Kotsika...
Egypt
Video: Traffic using World Heritage land at Giza as unofficial highway
BBC News (narrated by Christian Fraser)
This was featured on the BBC News 24 television channel last night and my eyes nearly popped out of my head at some of the footage. I'm very glad that they have featured the same story on the BBC website today, because it really needs to be highlighted.
An unofficial highway is being used which crosses World Heritage land at Giza. The foundations for a highway were put down 2km from the Giza pyramids but the project was abandoned in 1995 due to an outcry by archaeologists. However traffic continues to use both the abandoned foundations and the desert route that the completed highway would have taken. Professor Abdel Hamil Nur-el-Din is shown bemoaning the situation. A UNESCO spokesperson expresses sympahy for the Egyptian authorities, and a driver using the unofficial highway says that the new ringroad needs to be finnished.
A new highway, an extension to the greater Cairo ringroad, is being built along a different route but this is still very much under construction. Cairo's traffic is a ghastly problem. It's road infrastructure was built for 6 million people and the numbers now exceed 22 million. Preventing people from taking short cuts through the unexcavated desert, part of the Old Kingdom necropolis, is going to be very difficult.
An unofficial highway is being used which crosses World Heritage land at Giza. The foundations for a highway were put down 2km from the Giza pyramids but the project was abandoned in 1995 due to an outcry by archaeologists. However traffic continues to use both the abandoned foundations and the desert route that the completed highway would have taken. Professor Abdel Hamil Nur-el-Din is shown bemoaning the situation. A UNESCO spokesperson expresses sympahy for the Egyptian authorities, and a driver using the unofficial highway says that the new ringroad needs to be finnished.
A new highway, an extension to the greater Cairo ringroad, is being built along a different route but this is still very much under construction. Cairo's traffic is a ghastly problem. It's road infrastructure was built for 6 million people and the numbers now exceed 22 million. Preventing people from taking short cuts through the unexcavated desert, part of the Old Kingdom necropolis, is going to be very difficult.
Thousands of cars and lorries are using an abandoned road near Egypt's Pyramids that is protected by world heritage status.
The former head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities says he is outraged people are using the road, situated at the edge of the Giza plateau.
- Illegal Road On Antiquities Land Near Abusir
Cairo/Giza Daily Photo (Maryanne Stroud Gabbani) Maryanne follows this story with the better news that he local families met the other night and told the members who built the road that they could not quarry in this area, but it still makes one wonder...
- Site Management: Giza
drhawass.com (Zahi Hawass) The site of Giza is one of the most visited sites in Egypt. Everyone who comes to Egypt visits the great pyramids that dominate the landscape here. In the past, the site was crowded, cars were everywhere and also people selling...
- Travel: Cairo In The Fast Lane
South African (Nick Boulos) An evocative account of a day in Cairo. Very few people can afford a new car and even fewer can afford insurance. As a result, disputes over collisions are resolved at the roadside and generally involve lots of shouting and...
- World Heritage Sites: Threat Or Promise?
http://tinyurl.com/yxnyep (arabnews.com) An article about the pros and cons of establishing a site as a World Heritage Site. It is specific to three sites recently nominated in Saudi Arabia, but puts them into the context of more general issues: "Automobile...
- Two New Sarchophagi
http://tinyurl.com/e9n6f (iol.co.za)"Two ancient Egyptian sarcophagi dating back 3 000 years were discovered by highway workers south of Cairo, it was reported in Egypt on Monday.According to the Al-Ahram daily, workers along the southern Tora-Kotsika...