Melinda French Gates announced on Monday that she would be stepping down as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the largest private philanthropic organisations in the world.
“After careful thought and reflection, I have decided to resign from my role as co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. My last day of work at the foundation will be June 7,” Ms French Gates wrote on X.
“This is not a decision I came to lightly … The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy.”
The couple previously said they intended to continue leading the organisation together on a two-year trial basis following their divorce in 2021.
Under the terms of her agreement with Mr Gates, Ms French Gates will receive an additional $12.5 billion to further her philanthropic work focusing on women and families.
The foundation is one of the most influential forces in global public health, having spent more than $50 billion over the past two decades to bring a business approach to combating poverty and disease.
Microsoft co-founder Mr Gates commended Ms French Gates's efforts and expressed gratitude for her “critical contributions” to the foundation.
“As a co-founder and co-chair, Melinda has been instrumental in shaping our strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality,” he said on X.
“I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work.”
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The lowdown
Badla
Rating: 2.5/5
Produced by: Red Chillies, Azure Entertainment
Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Amrita Singh, Tony Luke
