Sudanese president meets his Egyptian counterpart

Sudanese president meets his Egyptian counterpart
From Sudan Tribune, Wednesday 28 April 2010:

April 27, 2010 (CAIRO) – Sudanese President Omer Al-Bashir returned to Khartoum after a brief visit to Egypt where he met President Hosni Mubarak who is convalescing after surgery in Germany last month.

The visit took place twenty four hours after the announcement of his re-election with 68% of vote by the National Elections Commission following five days of polling earlier this month.

President Mubarak congratulated Bahsir on his winning a new presidential term in the election.

The official news agency SUNA said Bashir and Mubarak held talks on bilateral relations and issue of common concern. He was accompanied by Bakri Hassan Saleh, minister at the presidency and Ali Karti, state minister of foreign affairs.

But the Egyptian MENA said the two leaders discussed Southern Sudan referendum and Darfur peace process. Mubarak told Al-Bashir that Egypt was anxious to see Sudan’s internal conflicts resolved, while maintaining the territorial integrity of the country.

Egypt expressed concern several times on the possible secession of southern Sudan after a referendum scheduled to be held next January. Cairo hosted last February talks between the two peace partners but failed to broker common grounds on the disputed issues. (ST)

King Tut's dad's toe back in Egypt

King Tut's dad's toe back in Egypt
From correspondents in Cairo (AFP) Herald Sun, April 15, 2010:

A TOE belonging to the father of famed boy pharaoh Tutankhamun has been returned to Egypt nearly a century after it was stolen, the Supreme Council of Antiquities says.

The toe of King Akhenaton, which was stolen in 1907 during an examination of the pharaoh's bones, was returned during a signing ceremony for an agreement with Switzerland over the return of ancient artefacts, the council said today.

"The toe is now back in Egypt and will be displayed in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo," said the statement, which confirmed that it was from the skeleton of the pharaoh, which had been found in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor.

The toe's movements since 1907 were not disclosed.

Frank Ruehli, a scientist at the University of Zurich and a specialist in mummies, obtained it "thanks to his personal contacts" in "another European country", a diplomat said without elaborating.

The return was thanks to the Ruehli's "private initiative" and not carried out by the Swiss government, which is the 16th country to sign the accord on stolen antiquities, the diplomat said.

Antiquities council chief Zaki Hawass said Switzerland's signature was particularly important as it had been a major transit point in the trade in smuggled artefacts in the past.

Earlier this month, Egypt hosted a conference of 25 countries that want stolen antiquities returned from abroad.

Akhenaton was a ruler of the 13th Dynasty. In February, Egypt announced that DNA tests had confirmed him to be the father of Tutankhamun, who died at the age of 19.

The antiquities council also announced that Egyptian archaeologists had discovered the tomb of a 19th Dynasty scribe, Qin Amin, in the Nile delta location of Tell El-Mashkouta.

Mr Hawass said the more than 3300-year-old tomb was the first from the 19th Dynasty found in the delta. It contained a limestone plaque inscribed with hieroglyphics of the Hyksos people, who invaded Egypt around 1640 BC.

On a level above the scribe's tomb, the archaeologists also discovered 35 tombs dating from Roman times.

Related Coverage

• Countries list relics they want backHerald Sun, 6 days ago
• 'Door to Afterlife' found in Eyptian tombHerald Sun, 29 Mar 2010
• DNA reveals King Tut's club foot, malariaHerald Sun, 17 Feb 2010
• King Tutankhamun 'a product of incest'The Australian, 16 Feb 2010
• King Tut's dad was mummy's brotherHerald Sun, 16 Feb 2010