Egypt's Losses From Suez Blockage Estimated at $1 Billion

CAIRO - The head of Egypt's Suez Canal Authority told journalists Thursday that the giant container ship Ever Given, which ran aground on March 23, blocking international shipping traffic, was being held in the Bitter Lakes region along the canal while an investigation continued with the ship’s captain and crew.

Lt. Gen. Oussama Rabie said he thought Egypt had incurred about $1 billion in damages from the accident. He lauded the experts and salvage crews that worked to free the ship, calling them the canal authority's most important capital. During the difficulty, he said, the authority relied on financial experts as well. Said Sadek, who teaches political sociology in Cairo, said investigators urgently needed to find the causes of the accident. "If it is not done, big trouble, because in this case, according to international law and Suez Canal law, the goods [on the ship] will be confiscated," Sadek said. "And so, if there is anything inside, it will be revealed. ... If there are children [being trafficked], if there are nuclear bombs, it will be revealed."