Sudan is home to more ancient pyramids than its neighbour Egypt! Despite years of tampering and looting, these unique pyramids still stand tall today. So which ones are older and hold more secrets of the African continent?
The Nubian people are to thank - an ancient community living by the Nile since 5,000 BC. They once ruled both Egypt and Sudan in what is known as the Kush Kingdom.
These structures are grouped in clusters at formerly grand sites like El Kurru, Gebel Barkal, and Meroe.
Debate rages about whether Egypt’s or Sudan’s pyramids are the oldest. What is known is that both are more than 2,000 years old.
Some sites in Sudan were sacred to the Egyptians…Jebel Barkal is a mountain that symbolised creation and fertility - being the presumed birthplace of their god of gods Amun.
A British expedition in 1897 discovered there were no burial chambers inside the Sudanese pyramids. Instead, these were underneath the pyramids - making them not tombs but colossal headstones.
Interestingly, the way they’re built - flat sides, solid on the inside - is very similar to pyramid structures in Central America. But this also made them easier to loot.
Italian treasure hunter Giuseppe Ferlini - who found gold under the pyramid in Meroe - is one of many looters to blame for truncating the pyramids……in other words, stealing the top part!
Despite years of vandalism and looting, these unique pyramids still stand tall today. And Sudan is in fact the country with the most pyramids in the world!
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False narratives have blurred the history of slavery in the United States.
For example, despite his own words regarding his intentions, former US President Abraham Lincoln (1809-65) continues to be credited with freeing enslaved Africans and presented as a morally upright person with good intentions.
Here, we debunk some of these myths, starting with Lincoln being no abolitionist.
Many have claimed that the US Civil War was about states' rights, but this couldn’t be further from the truth! On the other hand, abolishing slavery wasn't the priority for the North.
The story has been that the US North (the union) was the moral side for not being involved in slavery. However, the reality is much different!
Our Facts of the Week look at some striking cases of false flag operations - carried out either by imperial powers or, as in the case of Rwanda, ultimately serving their interests.
These tactics have been deployed across the world, from Africa to Europe, the Middle East and beyond, either devastating nations directly or refining methods later used elsewhere.
Like other Western powers, the UK has been deeply involved in destabilising the DRC.
Our latest Facts of the Week unpack how British governments, corporations and intelligence agencies have consistently undermined Congolese sovereignty for profit and geopolitical interests - be it through colonial-era scheming or modern economic exploitation.
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The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is a seemingly benign entity tasked with the noble-sounding mission of “advancing democracy” worldwide.
It was founded under the Reagan administration when the CIA was the capitalist bloc’s chief puppet master, orchestrating covert operations against governments that dared to defy the US.
The NED does openly what the CIA did secretly during the Cold War.
Libya gained independence from Italy on December 24, 1951, becoming the first country to do so through the United Nations. Yet many analysts argue that it only became genuinely sovereign on September 1 1969, when a group of Libyan Army officers under the leadership of Gaddafi launched a coup from Benghazi and quickly established control over the country. The coup was bloodless and received enthusiastic support from the public.
We look back at a figure who is controversial in the West but respected in many parts of the Global South, particularly in Africa. Putting aside the varying opinions, we objectively examine what Libya looked like before, during and after Nato-backed rebels toppled him in 2011. It brought to an end Gaddafi’s 42-year reign as president.