While Nur al-Din manoeuvred to attract the Crusaders' attention away from them, Shirkuh and his men crossed the Kingdom of Jerusalem and entered Egypt. This intervention was a momentous event in the history of the Fatimid regime and Egypt: the country, enfeebled by the constant civil wars, now became a prize in the contest between Damascus and Jerusalem, a process that would end with the abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate itself by Saladin in 1171. Dirgham appealed to Amalric for help, but the King of Jerusalem was unable to intervene in time: in late April 1164, the Syrians surprised and defeated Dirgham's brother Mulham at Bilbays, opening the way to Cairo. On the news of the battle, a panic broke out in the capitla of Egypt. Desperate for funds to pay his men, Dirgham confiscated the possessions of orphans, thereby provoking a public outcry against him. His troops began deserting him, including the entire "Rayhaniyya" corps. Left with only 500 horsemen, he appeared before the caliphal palace, but the caliph turned him away and advised him to save his life. More and more of his troops defected, until he was left with thirty men. He then fled Cairo, accompanied by the curses of the populace, while Shirkuh's army was entering the capital. He was overtaken near Fustat, however, dragged from his horse and killed (July/August 1154, other sources give the month as May/June), followed soon by his brothers. His head was severed and paraded in public, while his corpse was left unburied for several days, before being taken to a burial at Birkat al-Fil. Shawar, restored to the vizierate, quickly fell out with Shirkuh, and a complicated series of conflicts between Shawar, Shirkuh, and Amalric followed until 1169, when Shawar was executed and replaced as vizier by Shirkuh. When the latter died three months later, he was succeeded by his nephew, Saladin. Sigrid Aas  Sigrid Aas (born 1980) is a retired Norwegian cross-country skier. She made her World Cup debut in February 2004, finishing 33rd in a Stockholm sprint. Specializing as a sprinter, she collected her first World Cup points the following week when finishing 28th in Drammen. She improved to a 21st place in February 2005 in Reit im Winkl, 18th place in March 2007 in Lahti and 13th place in March 2007 in Drammen.