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Sudan floods kill over 100, threaten archaeological site

FILE - This April 16, 2015 file photo, shows a general view of the historic Meroe pyramids site, in al-Bagrawiya, 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Khartoum, Sudan. A leading archaeologist says the floodwaters have already entered the ancient royal city of the Kushite kings known as the Island of Meroe, a UNESCO World Heritage site. .(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

CAIRO — Flash floods in Sudan have killed more than 100 people and inundated over 100,000 houses across the country this summer, threatening even a famous archaeological site near the capital, Khartoum. A leading archaeologist says the floodwaters have already entered the ancient royal city of the Kushite kings known as the Island of Meroe, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

It’s called the “Island of Meroe” because of its proximity to the Nile River and it was the heartland of the Kingdom of Kush, a major power in the ancient world from the 8th century B.C. to the 4th century. Flash floods have ravaged swaths of Sudan since late July.