CAIRO, July 20, 2018 (MENA) - The Egyptian Cabinet Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC) denied reports circulated on social media on replacing basalt tiles floor with asphalt at Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah Street. In its report, the center said that it had contacts with the Culture Ministry, which refuted as "baseless" the news. On Thursday, Archaeologist Sameh el Zahar, a specialist in Islamic and Coptic archaeology, dismissed claims circulated on social networking websites on removing basalt tiles floor at Al Mu'izz li-Dîn Allah Street and replacing them with (asphalt) known as bitumen. In a statement to MENA, Zahar termed the circulated video as "groundless", pointing out that the street, which is depicted in the video is Bab El Wazir in El Darb El Ahmar district and not Al-Mu'izz. He called on social media users to ensure accuracy before publishing such false information, which may negatively affect Egypt as a cultural destination. He also urged the government to modernize El Darb El Ahmar district in general and Bab El Wazir in particular so that it would be turned into an open museum and a tourist attraction. Al-Mu'izz Street is an open street museum of Islamic architect. A UN study found it to have the greatest concentration of medieval architectural treasures in the Islamic world. The street is named for Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah, the fourth caliph of the Fatimid dynasty.
