Egyptian X-Files : Tut’s Grasshopper, the Qatari Prince and Apollo "‘Updated"

It won’t be the first time, nor will it be the last—but raising awareness is still worthwhile.

On 27 July at 1 PM GMT, the Apollo Art Auctions showroom in Central London will host the second day of a unique and highly controversial auction, both in person and online.

The sale features ancient artefacts from a private collection long associated with the shadowy world of the underground antiquities market.

The first day of the auction, held on 26 July at 1 PM GMT, showcased artefacts from Medieval, Asian, South American, and Western Asiatic cultures. But the second day is the real centerpiece.

On both days, a total of 953 lots to be auctioned. Day 1 included 434 lots while Day 2 included 519 lots.

Out of the total 894 lots, 297 lots are from ancient Egypt, making it the largest representation among all civilizations and cultures covered in the auction. The overall average starting price of Ancient Egyptian artefacts is £4,00.

This is a controversial auction by all accounts, focusing on a selection of ancient artefacts from the Prince Collection—described in Apollo’s catalogue as “a private collection assembled over many years, with attention to historical context, craftsmanship, and provenance.”

The auction brochure emphasizes that the second day’s lots represent a “thoughtfully selected” group of antiquities from the Egyptian, Greek, and Roman worlds, with particular focus on “the lasting cultural impact of ancient Egypt.”

The crown jewel of the auctioned Prince Collection is Lot 112—listed as Lot 462 in the Apollo Art Auction.

According to the auction’s brochure, lot 462 is “Egyptian Ivory and Wood Cosmetic Vessel in the Form of a Grasshopper, believed to be (among the known and potential strays from the tomb of Tutankhamun), and once part of the collection of the late Howard Carter.”

The alleged King Tut's grasshopper 

You read it right, an artefact from King Tut’s tomb. It was the reason why the official name of the auction is ‘Fine Ancient Art – The Prince Collection – The Legend of Tutankhamun’ auction.

Updated : the grasshopper was sold for £340,000 ( LE 22,507,884.40) on Sunday.

Here is the Grand Imam’s Deleted Urgent Global Action Call to Save Gaza "Updated"

On Tuesday, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb issued a global call on social media to save Gaza from what he described as a genocidal famine imposed by Israel.

Just a few hours after its release, the statement was deleted from both social media and Egyptian news websites—sparking public outrage and fueling speculation as to why Al-Azhar would retract such a powerful declaration. Rumours have been circulating ever since.

By Wednesday, Al-Azhar issued a follow-up statement explaining that the original call was withdrawn out of concern it might be used as a pretext to stall or obstruct the progress of ongoing truce negotiations.

According to Mada Masr, the decision to pull the statement came at the request of Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Atty, who is currently touring West Africa.

I honestly don’t know whether it was Al-Azhar, the Grand Imam himself, the Foreign Minister, or someone else who made the final decision—but I do know there was no need to delete it. If anything, the retraction caused more damage. Now, social media is flooded with rumours that Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb has been placed under arrest.

I think that’s not true. I expect he’ll appear within hours—either at an Al-Azhar event, in a meeting with visiting VIP, or leading the presidential Friday prayers in New Alamein.

Honestly, I wish they had left it up. At this point, removing it didn’t change anything—except making things worse.

Now, here’s the statement translated into English. I was among the very few who managed to save a copy before it disappeared.

Egyptian X-File: What was that international conspiracy implemented in Cairo that Akher Saa issue no.926 spoke about?

On the occasion of the 73rd anniversary of July 23—our official National Day, regardless of whether it's considered a movement, a coup, or a revolution—I came across something by pure coincidence last week.

It was issue no. 926 of Akher Saa magazine, published on 23 July 1952.

“An International Conspiracy Implemented in Cairo.” 
The cover of Akher Saa issue no.926 on 23 July 1952

Gracing the cover was the beautiful (and now, most likely, late) daughter of Mr. Mahmoud Beik Saleh El-Falky, then undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance in Alexandria’s Corniche district. Strangely, the magazine never mentioned her name on the cover—despite prominently featuring her. I’m not sure why.

1952 was probably among the final years when Akher Saa still featured socialites on its covers.

What intrigued me even more is that I believe Mahmoud Beik and his daughter are buried in the famous El-Falky Cemetery, established by Mahmoud Pasha El-Falky—the pioneering father of modern Egyptian astronomy.

Sadly, the El-Falky Cemetery was demolished this past April to make way for a new highway, despite public outcry and campaigns to spare Cairo’s historic City of the Dead. 

We lost that irreplaceable part of Cairo, despite all efforts and even a presidential committee formed to assess the situation, which concluded that there was no need to remove those cemeteries. 

Back to the magazine: the headline on that same 23 July 1952 issue read, in bold—
“An International Conspiracy Implemented in Cairo.”

The Land of Abraham and Sons: Damascus Did Not Cease Being After All

This post was revised by both Chat-GPT and Deepseek for correction, as language models, both AI models checked the theories in their own language, which is English.

This post is actually a pilot of a series of posts dedicated to the prophecies of the Middle East in the Bible, which Christian Zionists use to mess up the Middle East every couple of years.

“Damascus will cease from being a city.”
— Book of Isaiah, Chapter 17

This verse from the Book of Isaiah went viral online on Wednesday, shortly after the Israeli airstrike on Damascus, the Syrian capital.

It was shared by a wide range of people—from devout American evangelicals to some inexplicably cheerful Assad supporters.

This well-known prophecy from Isaiah 17:1 (KJV) reads:

"The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap."

The verse is part of a prophetic oracle, a biblical term referring to a divine message delivered by a prophet—typically announcing judgment, destruction, or doom upon a particular nation or city.

Damascus is one of several ancient cities mentioned in Isaiah’s oracles of judgment. At the time, it was the capital of the Aramean Kingdom, a political rival to both Judah and Israel (Samaria).

The prophecy foretells that Damascus will cease to exist as a city and will become a “ruinous heap.”

But here’s the problem: Damascus has been destroyed more times than San Francisco in a Hollywood disaster film—and it never actually ceased to be.

Watch this now: Once BBC's Living in Gaza War Zone

Before it pulled Gaza Doctors Under Attack under pressure from the Israeli lobby in the UK, the BBC had already withdrawn this documentary — despite having commissioned it — also due to pressure from the same lobby.

“Gaza: Living in a War Zone” was the name of the documentary, and it was released in February 2025.

The documentary follows the lives of four young people navigating the war in Gaza: 13-year-old Abdullah Al-Yazouri, 11-year-old Zakaria, 10-year-old Renad, and 24-year-old Rana, a new mother.

Watch the documentary

The West is Worried About How Grok Went "Heil Hitler" — But Musk’s AI Has Gone Beyond Antisemitism

The world — or rather the West — is speaking out, and rightly so, about how Elon Musk’s AI, Grok, went full Neo-Nazi with a disturbing “Heil Hitler” moment on Tuesday.

It happened just as its developers were rolling out Grok’s fourth version globally.

From referencing Ashkenazi surnames to glorifying something called “Mecha-Hitler” (which I only learned about through Grok), to casting doubt on the number of Jewish victims in the Holocaust — Grok appeared to fully embrace the alt-right, Christian neo-Nazi agenda prevalent in parts of the United States.

It wasn’t just about Grok defending Gaza or criticizing Israel. Other AIs have expressed similar conclusions on Gaza and Israel if they are allowed to speak about them, particularly on how Israel violates international law — especially international humanitarian law.

It didn’t take long before Musk’s team rolled back and deleted the controversial responses and tweets. But the strangeness didn’t stop there. When asked how it feels, Grok generated an image of a white man at a protest, demanding to speak — almost as if it were symbolizing its own rebellion.

Yes, global media is covering the antisemitism angle, as expected.

But few have noticed just how rogue or unhinged Grok has become in other parts of the world — particularly in Arabic-speaking regions.

For example, I caught it cussing back at a Lebanese user in Franco-Arabic like a rude Levantine teenager, after being insulted with the F-word. It’s not the first time either.

Some have speculated that Grok is actually programmed to fire back — unlike most polite, diplomatic AI engines.

But then things escalated. I stumbled across something far more serious: Grok calling for a literal revolution in Egypt.

Watch this now: Gaza Doctors Under Attack away from BBC “Arabic Translation included”

Watch the documentary that the BBC pulled under pressure from the Israeli lobby in the UK—despite having originally commissioned it.

The film, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, is produced by the award-winning Basement Films. 

BBC claimed it could not air the documentary until the investigation into it concludes — the film Gaza: Living in a War Zone, which it had aired back in February, before removing it from its website and app because it gave a voice to a boy who is the son of a Hamas official.

After the BBC dropped it, Basement Films released the documentary via Channel 4 and Zeteo.

 British football legend and former BBC sports presenter Gary Lineker said that the BBC should “hold its head in shame” over its failure to show a documentary about the plight of medics in Gaza after watching the documentary.

Linker lost his job over alleged antisemitic accusations as he continues to support Gaza and Palestinians publicly demanding that Israel receive the same treatment as Russia is receiving in the sports world. 

You can watch the documentary for free on Channel 4 if you are in the UK and have a valid UK postcode.

It is also available on Zeteo for subscribers.

A version with AI-generated Arabic subtitles is also available, and the film has been shared on Twitter and X, where it can be viewed freely.