Egypt: Cairo authorities demolish historic Falaky Mosque and ancient cemeteries

A man stands inside the tomb of the El-Meligy family, prior to its demolition in a historic Cairo cemetery that will be partially razed to accommodate the growing mega-city, on November 6, 2024. [ AFP/ Getty Images]

Egyptian authorities have demolished the historic Mahmoud Pasha al-Falaky Mosque and are accelerating the destruction of Old Cairo’s cemeteries under the banner of urban development—sparking outrage among heritage advocates and locals.

According to Mada Masr, in the early hours last Wednesday, bulldozers flattened the mosque’s dome and minaret, part of the 19th-century funerary complex within the Imam al-Shafei cemetery. “There were no scaffolds. How could this have been done in a scientific manner?” a researcher documenting Cairo’s burial grounds told the outlet.

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The Imam al-Shafei site—often referred to as the “cemetery of the pashas”—hosts the graves of royal family members and intellectual elites. Despite its protected heritage status, it is among several cemeteries now targeted for removal. Residents and caretakers have been told to prepare for relocation to Robaiky Cemetery in 10th of Ramadan City.

In parallel, demolition has resumed at Bab al-Nasr cemetery, Cairo’s oldest communal burial ground, once home to Sufi saints, Levantine traders, and the city’s working poor. The site, opposite the historic Moezz Street, had previously been partially cleared to build a parking facility for a Bohra sect hotel. Despite government assurances that no further demolition would occur, another 120 square metres are now being razed.

Mahmoud Gamal, a plot owner at Bab al-Nasr, was informed that his family’s remains would be moved to Geneifa, over an hour from Cairo. “This cemetery is our history,” he said.

Historians and archaeologists warn the demolitions are erasing centuries of cultural and communal memory. “We’re watching history disappear in real time,” one archaeologist told Mada Masr.

Security forces have also clamped down on photography and documentation of the sites to limit public backlash, researchers say.

READ: Egypt condemns Israeli settler calls to blow up Al-Aqsa Mosque

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