CAIRO, Nov 17, 2004 (Xinhua via COMTEX)
-- Massive swarms of locusts on Wednesday swept through the Egyptian
capital of Cairo after threatening the country's northern fertile regions.
The swarms are believed to be Africa's
biggest in more than 10 years and the insects have already left a trail
of devastation south of the Sahara desert.
Some of the locusts landed in the Mohandessin district at about 11 a.m. (0900 GMT), prompting residents to come out to have a look.
As they landed on the rooftops of some buildings, people began to chase and kill them with wooden plates and other tools.
Many citizens gathered at a downtown square to get a glimpse of this unusual sight, a Xinhua correspondent saw at the scene.
An Agriculture Ministry official told Xinhua that swarms of locusts were first reported on Oct. 28 in Egypt's western region along the border with Libya and now they had been detected in many parts of the country.
Crops on the northwestern coast near the border with Libya have already fallen victim to the insects.
The locust swarms have already travelled on the strong wind from North Africa to Cyprus. The Saudi and Sudanese authorities have been alerted.