Egypt's Malawi National Museum has been broken into and ransacked during the mass protests that have blighted the country in recent months.

All of the artefacts will be placed on UNESCO's red list to prevent their illegal sale

The museum, situated in Upper Egypt, is now reported to have had many of its treasures stolen, including 1,050 artefacts spanning 3,500 years of history.

"I firmly condemn the attacks against the cultural institutions of the country and the looting of its cultural property," commented UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova. "This constitutes irreversible damage to the history and identity of the Egyptian people."

UNESCO has placed all the artefacts on its red list in an attempt to stop them from being sold on the international antiquities market.

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