Thread by @ATHARProject

Facebook is still providing traffickers with a direct line to financiers of looting activities.

Here, a looter in Egypt posts a video of the pharaonic reliefs he has access to, he just needs funding to help finish the site

A recent case shows how a funding scheme works-THREAD

On June 30, Egypt announced the detention of a gang of 19 people, including a wealthy businessman and a former MP, for a vast scheme that involved both looting and trafficking antiquities

english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/…

Businessman Hassan Rateb was not doing the illegal excavating of course, but it was an activity he spent millions to help finance.

youm7.com/story/2021/7/1…

Looting of archaeological sites at a large scale can be an expensive endeavor.

This is particularly the case Egypt where looters will often drill through stone or dive into tombs filled with ground water. Both require expensive heavy equipment that the lay person cannot afford.

But for many the investment is worth the risk, particularly when valuable artifacts can be found and laundered into the market to feed a western appetite for antiquities— like the 114 trafficked Egyptian artifacts seized in France last month egypttoday.com/Article/1/1053…

According to prosecutors in the recent case of the 19-person looting gang, businessman Hassan Ratib didn't just finance the illicit excavations.

He used his international connections to facilitate the smuggling to artifacts abroad. almasryalyoum.com/news/details/2…

And Ratib was engaged in more than just financing looting and smuggling antiquities - he was using the scheme for money laundering too

"The evidence also established the accusations of smuggling, destruction, and money laundering." dailynewsegypt.com/2021/06/30/egy…

It's also important to remember that a former member of parliament was leading this antiquities gang.

Alaa Hassanein was a MP from the Mubarak-era.

His extracurricular interests are eccentric to say the least... albawaba.com/news/egyptian-…

Former MP Hassanein has previously been billed as the "deputy of jinns and demons" for his "ability" to speak to spirits.

Some of Hassanein's magical spirit books that he used for the looting at sites were seized by authorities.

m.akhbarelyom.com/news/newdetail…

While it seems silly, the use of magical incantations to speak to jinns and open tombs is a common piece of looting folklore

Facebook is often used by believers of this folklore to seek out sheikhs who can cleanse potential tombs of jinn In exchange for a cut of the antiquities

Massive Facebook pages that are dedicated to teaching users how to loot antiquities are pushing the need to pay sheikhs for this "service" and sharing photos and videos with alleged jinn guarding tomb treasures.

This looting FB page has over 2 million followers.

The Egyptian gov. has sent a strong message by arresting a businessman and former MP for antiquities trafficking and illegal excavation

But even these strong efforts will make little difference when Facebook continues to facilitate the same activities on its 2.85bn-user platform