TRIPOLI, LIBYA // Gunmen abducted the president of the Libyan Olympic committee in the nation's capital, grabbing him from his car and bundling him into a waiting vehicle, his brother said today.
Salah Al Alam said his brother, committee chief Ahmed Nabil Al Taher Al Alam, was kidnapped on Sunday near the organisation's offices in central Tripoli. He said there has been no contact with him or the captors since.
Security officials said they are investigating Al Alam's disappearance. They did not provide any further details.
Salah Al Alam said he learned of the abduction from his brother's friend, who was with the LOC chief when the kidnapping took place. The gunmen stopped Al Alam's car, shoved him into another car and sped off, leaving the friend unharmed on the street.
The abduction comes amid a wave of score settling between rivals of Libya's eight-month civil war that ended with the capture and killing of longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi in October. Dozens of former rebel groups now operate independently, often ignoring the nation's weak central authorities.
Since Qaddafi's fall, militias frequently have taken matters into their own hands and rounded up officials with ties to the ousted regime.
Al Alam, who served as the head of the Libyan Football Association under Qaddafi, is known to have been friends with Qaddafi's son, Mohammed, who was Al Alam's predecessor as the Libyan Olympic committee president.
In London, Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, expressed "grave" concern about the kidnapping, and said his office has "offered any possible help if we can do something."
"Hopefully this will evolve in a good way," he told reporters.
Five Libyans have qualified to compete in the 2012 Summer Olympics to be held in London.
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
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9.25pm: Handicap; Dh170,000; 1,600m
10pm: Handicap; Dh190,000; 1,400m
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if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning.
The trains
Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
If you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Chicago from Dh5,215 return including taxes.
The hotels
Recommended hotels include the Intercontinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, located in an iconic skyscraper complete with a 1929 Olympic-size swimming pool from US$299 (Dh1,100) per night including taxes, and the Omni Chicago Hotel, an excellent value downtown address with elegant art deco furnishings and an excellent in-house restaurant. Rooms from US$239 (Dh877) per night including taxes.
The biog
Favourite food: Tabbouleh, greek salad and sushi
Favourite TV show: That 70s Show
Favourite animal: Ferrets, they are smart, sensitive, playful and loving
Favourite holiday destination: Seychelles, my resolution for 2020 is to visit as many spiritual retreats and animal shelters across the world as I can
Name of first pet: Eddy, a Persian cat that showed up at our home
Favourite dog breed: I love them all - if I had to pick Yorkshire terrier for small dogs and St Bernard's for big