By Khaled Mahmoud, Daily News Egypt The Hanging Church, one of the oldest churches in the world, located in Mar Girgis in Coptic Cairo was re-opened on Saturday following 16 years of renovations. Both Egyptians and Russians were involved in the process of restoring the church. The opening of the church was attended by Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb, Patriarch of Saint Mark Episcopate Pope Tawadros II, Archbishops Yacoub Soliman and Anthony Mikhael, and the Governor of Cairo Galal Saeed, in addition to a number of ministers, ambassadors and public figures. Renovations were completed across two stages. The first stage focused on frescoes and was undertaken by Russian experts, while the second related to architectural aspects of the church and was led by the Egyptian Antiquities Authority, said Peter Mounir Awad, church custodian. He added that these elements, along with the death of Pope Shenouda and events of the 25 January Revolution, greatly lengthened the renovation process, which began in 1998. The church is 1,700 years old, making it one of the oldest churches in the world, and is named for its location above the gatehouse of the Roman Babylon fortress,…
