Military Detain 50 at Museum

Soldiers detained about 50 men trying to break into the Egyptian National Museum in a fresh attempt to loot some of the country’s archaeological treasures, the military said Monday.Snipers were stationed on the roof of the building, and dozens of troops patrolled the grounds of the famed antiquities museum amid fears that the chaos sweeping Cairo could engulf the nation’s heritage.

Some of the most intense anti-government protests in the past week happened near the museum.On Monday, half a dozen suspected thieves lay in a group on the floor of the entrance, their faces covered by a blanket. Guards said they were caught trying to enter.A military general at the museum said soldiers arrested about 35 men trying to break into the building on Sunday, and another 15 on Monday.

He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.Troops said they were given orders not to shoot, but to protect the building and its contents.On the second floor, one case containing a gold trinket, two small rods and other small artifacts was broken, and another case was smashed on the first floor.

The cases were next to the gated room containing the gold funerary mask of King Tutankhamun that draws millions of tourists a year. The museum houses thousands of artifacts spanning the full sweep of Egypt’s rich pharaonic history.