The SonntagsBlick newspaper has revealed the government owns several large properties in Egypt which are in a poor state of repair – two have been empty for the last 43 years.
Two buildings are in Alexandria. A Swiss family live in one of the outbuildings rent free and maintains the garden and as protection against squatters.
There are other buildings in the capital Cairo. The government says it wants to move the embassy into one of them, but it need significant renovation.
The government says they haven’t been sold as they are protected – so a buyer can’t demolish them. There have been attempts to get the listing changed, but without success.
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