ABU DHABI // Lt General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, on Tuesday offered his condolences on the death of the President of Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov.
Sheikh Saif read Al Fateh over the tomb of the late President in Samarkand, Uzbekistan and then laid a wreath on the mausoleum.
He expressed his heartfelt condolences and sympathies on the loss of a statesman who had devoted his life to serving his country and leading his people towards progress and development, reported Wam, the state news agency.
Sheikh Saif prayed to Allah Almighty to rest his soul in peace.
The UAE minister also conveyed the condolences of the President, Sheikh Khalifa.
Sheikh Saif arrived at Samarkand International Airport early on Tuesday, where he was received by General Rustam Inoyatov, Head of the National Security Service (SNB) of Uzbekistan, Uzbek officials, and Mohamed Hareb Al Mehairbi, UAE Ambassador to Uzbekistan.
The UAE minister was accompanied by Major General Dr Nasser Lakhraibani Al Nuaimi, Secretary-General of the Office of the Minister of Interior, Major General Khalifa Hareb Al Khaili, Acting Assistant Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Interior for Naturalisation, Residency and Ports Affairs, Joan Owaida Suhail Al Khaili, Brig. Juma Ahmed Hamel Al Qubaisi, and a number of officers.
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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
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
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