Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The Embassy of Egypt in Brussels, in cooperation with the Royal Belgian Society of Egyptology, coordinated an event at the headquarters of the Royal Academy of Sciences on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of Egyptology in Belgium and the establishment of the Royal Society of Egyptology, in the presence of all Egyptology scholars in Belgium, as well as a number of important figures and members of the corps. Accredited diplomats, and a number of symbols of the Egyptian community in Belgium.
The event included the delivery of the main lecture by Dr. Khaled Al-Anani, former Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, and the candidate of Egypt and the Arab countries for the position of Director General of UNESCO, in which he discussed the great boom that Egypt is witnessing in the field of antiquities with the support and guidance of the President of the Republic, which included many important archaeological discoveries over the years. The latter, in addition to the establishment of an unprecedented number of new museums, whether in Cairo or the regional governorates, most notably the Grand Egyptian Museum and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization, and the development of the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir and many archaeological areas, including the revival of the Holy Family Path. He stressed that without the support of the President and the large budget he directed to allocate, it would not have been possible to achieve these great achievements.
In his lecture, Dr. Al-Anani emphasized the great interest that the President and the Egyptian government attach to developing and preserving archaeological religious sites from the various three monotheistic religions, as they represent part of the historical, civilizational and cultural heritage of Egypt and the tolerance and harmony between the various religions on the land of Egypt.
During the event, the professor of Egyptology in Belgium also gave a number of lectures in which they reviewed the history of the founding of Egyptology in Belgium by the scientist John Capar and the history of the work of Belgian archaeological missions in Egypt, in addition to the historic visit made by Queen Elizabeth, the great-grandmother of the King of Belgium. To Egypt in 1923, she was the first woman to visit King Tutankhamun’s tomb after its discovery, in addition to the visit made by Queen Mathilde, Queen of Belgium and Crown Princess “Elizabeth” to Egypt in March 2023, which reflects the passion of the royal family and Belgian citizens for history and civilization. Ancient Egyptian.
The Egyptian Ambassador to Belgium, Dr. Badr Abdel Aty agreed to hold a reception at the residence of the Egyptian Ambassador after the end of the event, in the presence of Dr. Al-Anani and a large number of archaeologists and prominent Egyptology specialists in Belgium, as well as a number of Belgian officials, led by the Director General of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Bilateral Political Relations, and a number of European ambassadors, led by the ambassadors of France, Italy and Bulgaria.
On the other hand, based on an invitation from the New University of Leuven, Dr. Al-Anani gave a lecture at the university’s headquarters in the presence of a large number of university professors, students, scholars, and a number of symbols of the Egyptian community and the campus of the Egyptian ambassador to Belgium, in which he discussed the recent archaeological discoveries in Egypt.