Time Magazine has the story of Cairo’s Egyptian Museum which was invaded by looters who ransacked the gift shop. Nine others ventured into the museum itself, according to Zahi Hawass:
Nine of them apparently realized that the real treasures were elsewhere. They entered a room containing artifacts dating back to 500 B.C. The intruders broke into some 13 glass panel display cases as well as one case in the Tutankahmun exhibition. Hawass did not give TIME permission to view the destruction in the museum, which has been shut for the duration of the crisis. But video footage from several Arabic satellite networks, including al-Arabiya, showed shards of glass littering the floor and several artifacts carelessly tossed around, some resting on splinters, others haning out of display cases. “They were looking for gold,” Hawass told TIME, just like the grave robbers of old.
The military, which has taken over security duties throughout Cairo and in many other cities, did not arrive on the scene until 10 p.m. In the meantime, ordinary Cairenes, aware of the security vacuum, flocked to protect the museum.
