A fresh prehistoric discovery in Fayoum is dominating the conversation on Egypt internationally this morning: The fossil of a miniature whale only 2.5 meters long has been unearthed by Egyptian paleontologists in Wadi Al Hitan. The fossil is “not something we usually see from that time period,” said professor Hashem Sallam, founder of the Mansoura University Vertebrate Palaeontology Center, referring to the Eocene period that lasted from about 55.8 mn to 33.9 mn years ago. The whale has been named Tutcetus rayanensis after the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun. Read the researchers’ study in the open-access journal Communications Biology here. (AFP | The Guardian | CBS News | ABC News | The National | Business Insider | The Independent)

Also making headlines:

  • Egypt stays neutral in Russia-Ukraine war: Egypt is resisting requests from senior US leaders to send weapons to Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing Egyptian and American officials. (WSJ)
  • The Rosetta Stone returns – sort of: The Rosetta Stone is being “digitally repatriated” to Fort Qaitbay in Rashid— the believed site of its discovery — by anti-looting arts collective Looty. Visitors will be able to see an augmented reality installation of the stone via a QR code. The stone was captured by the British in 1801 and has been displayed at the British Museum ever since. (New York Times)
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