Those who remember central Cairo before the 1960s speak of its gracious belle époque buildings, smart department stores and lively cafés frequented by a cosmopolitan elite of Egyptians, Europeans, Jews and Armenians.

The past 50 years, however, have been a story of decline. Socialism introduced in the 1950s impoverished the old Egyptian elite and drove out foreigners. The city centre fell into disrepair as rent control laws reduced to a pittance the incomes of landlords, who stopped investing in the upkeep of their properties.