July 12, 2021
CAIRO “The Great Antiquity Smuggling Case” is how Egypt s media is referring to the latest incident of the large numbers of antiquities stolen and smuggled abroad.
Investigations indicate the involvement of several prominent Egyptian figures accused of illegal antiquity trafficking, including businessman Mohammad Baghdadi, who was arrested on July 2.
On June 27, Egypt s public prosecutor returned from Paris on a plane loaded with 114 artifacts Egyptian authorities recovered from France after more than two years of investigating the smuggling case.
Two days later, on June 29, prominent Egyptian businessman Hassan Rateb was arrested on charges of funding illegal antiquity excavations.
A few days earlier, on June 24, Egyptian security forces arrested Alaa Hassanein, a former member of the Egyptian parliament, on charges of illegally digging up artifacts and illegal possession of several antiquity pieces.