Egyptian and international archaeologists and Egyptologists have signed petition and sent it to Egypt’s new prime minister, highlighting the need to protect and preserve Egypt’s heritage. In the petition, experts asked Essam Sharaf to put Egypt’s antiquities and archaeological sites at the top of his agenda.

Since the 25 January uprising, Egypt’s monuments were subject to looting and threatened by vandals.

“Would you please make it a top priority of your government to return police to archaeological sites so as to put an end to the illegal excavations, the looting of storehouses and tombs, and illegal construction on governmental archaeological land,” archaeologists wrote in the petition which Ahram Online gained a copy of.

“The desecration of archaeological sites and monuments is not only a huge loss for the people of Egypt on a national, economic, and human level, but is also a loss to all of humanity and to science.”

Tarek El-Awadi, director general of the Egyptian Museum, who presented the petition on the behalf of all archaeologists worldwide, said that all archaeologists and Egyptologists have hope that Sharaf will take immediate steps to save Egypt’s heritage.