Egypt restores oldest monastery
Source: Agencies |
February 5, 2010, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
EGYPT'S antiquities chief yesterday unveiled the completion of an eight-year, US$14.5 million restoration of the world's oldest Christian monastery, saying it was a sign of Christian-Muslim coexistence.
The announcement at the 1,600-year-old St Anthony's Monastery came a month after Egypt's worst sectarian violence in over a decade, when a shooting on a church on Orthodox Christmas Eve killed seven people.
Egypt insists the shooting was a purely criminal act with no sectarian motives, and officials persistently deny the existence of significant Muslim-Christian frictions.
Top archeologist Zahi Hawass took the opportunity to reiterate that stance as he showed journalists the work at St Anthony's. "The announcement we are making today shows to the world how we are keen to restore the monuments of our past, whether Coptic, Jewish or Muslim," he said, referring to the dominant Orthodox Coptic Christian sect in Egypt.
The announcement at the 1,600-year-old St Anthony's Monastery came a month after Egypt's worst sectarian violence in over a decade, when a shooting on a church on Orthodox Christmas Eve killed seven people.
Egypt insists the shooting was a purely criminal act with no sectarian motives, and officials persistently deny the existence of significant Muslim-Christian frictions.
Top archeologist Zahi Hawass took the opportunity to reiterate that stance as he showed journalists the work at St Anthony's. "The announcement we are making today shows to the world how we are keen to restore the monuments of our past, whether Coptic, Jewish or Muslim," he said, referring to the dominant Orthodox Coptic Christian sect in Egypt.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
