The windows of the Egyptian Museum’s first and second floor were smashed as a result of a blast in the vicinity of the Italian consulate in Cairo earlier on Saturday, the ministry of antiquities said. The explosion, which killed one and injured 10 others, damaged parts of the Italian consulate building and destroyed the windows of nine buildings in its vicinity, reported the state news agency MENA. The blast did not affect any of the Egyptian Museum’s collectibles or displays, said Mostafa Amin, the secretary general of the Supreme Council for Antiquities in a statement by the ministry. Amin, who visited the museum shortly after the explosion, ordered that the windows be fixed on Saturday. A ministry official meanwhile denied to MENA that the damaged consulate building is an archaeological site, noting that it is not listed as an Islamic or Coptic monument within the ministry. Mohamed Abdel Lattif, head of the ministry’s Islamic and Coptic sector, said that the closest archaeological sites to the explosion are the Sultan Abul Ela Mosque, which belongs to the Memluk era, and the Arabic Music Institute. Neither of the sites was affected by…
