CAIRO: The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) is taking legal action against the workers of Mengak Al Youssefi Mosque after some of the mosque's antiques located in the citadel area were stolen last Friday. Decorative parts of the menbar (the preacher's pulpit) of the mosque made of ivory and ebony were stolen along with its doors and platform. Zahi Hawass, SCA secretary general, pointed fingers at the workers of the mosque affiliated with the Ministry of Endowments, claiming that their "carelessness led to the robbery. He demanded that necessary legal procedures be taken in this case. Mohsen Said Ali, head of Islamic and Coptic antiquities department, filed a police report accusing the person responsible for guarding the mosque of leaving his post several times. Ali added that they warned the general secretary for mosques' affairs at the Ministry of Endowments about the frequency of similar incidents because of irresponsible workers who leave the mosques unattended. "The ministry is still studying the case and an investigation will be conducted to identify those responsible for it, Samir Fawzy, spokesperson for the Ministry of Endowments told Daily News Egypt. However he said that although the mosque is affiliated with the ministry, the antiques located in the mosque are the responsibility of the antiquities council. Mengak Al Youssefi Mosque dates back to the Mamluki era and was built in 1349 (750 in the Islamic calendar) by Prince Mengak Al Youssef. The Ministries of Endowments and Culture were playing the blame game, with neither claiming responsibility for the incident. Hamdy Zaqzouq, minister of endowments, said in previous statements that the responsibility in such cases lies also on the antiquities authority that is supposed to supervise these mosques. On the other hand, Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni refuted these allegations saying that the antiquities entity's role is to reconstruct these mosques and protect them from construction violations. He also called for establishing a department at the Ministry of Endowments to protect these sites and guarantee security presence at all times especially at night when these incidents are likely to occur. Last year, a member of the local council of Cairo reported that the doors of Sayeda Zeinab mosque were stolen after thieves threatened the keeper of the mosque with knives.
