A young man who had been digging for relics under his home was killed when his house collapsed in the village of Kaha in the Nile Delta province of Qalyubiya.
The incident caused panic among local residents who feared that adjacent houses, built of limestone, would also fall as a result of the digging.
Village residents have reportedly forbidden their children from leaving their homes due to rumors of tomb raiders looking for children to sacrifice to gain entrance to an ancient tomb in the area.
“I heard strange voices emanating from my neighbor’s home,” said local resident Riad Shalaby. “When I went to investigate, I found an eight-meter deep ditch running through the middle of the house.”
Resident Abdel Aziz Suleiman called on local government officials to "ban informal excavations."
“I told officials that my neighbor was using digging equipment under his home,” said Mohamed Abdel Fattah. “But by the time they came to inspect the place, he was no longer at home.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
