Egyptian Forces Kill 40 Suspected Terrorists after Tourist Bus Attack
A roadside bomb hit a tourist bus on Friday near the Giza Pyramids, killing three Vietnamese and their Egyptian guide. This is the first attack to target foreign tourists since 2017
Dr. Shaul Shay
| 30/12/2018
Security forces stand near a tourist bus after a roadside bomb in an area near the Giza Pyramids (Photo: AP)
Egyptian security officials said a roadside bomb had hit a tourist bus on December 28, 2018, in an area near the Giza Pyramids, killing four people, three Vietnamese and one Egyptian, and wounding 11 others. The bus with 14 tourists from Vietnam was traveling in the Marioutiyah area near the pyramids when the roadside bomb went off. The improvised explosive device (IED) was placed near a wall along Mariyutiya Street in the Haram district near the Giza Pyramids.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, the first attack to target tourists since 2017.
The Egyptian Response
Security forces were immediately dispatched to the area and all the injured have been transported to the El-Haram hospital in Egypt's Giza governorate. Shortly after the attack, Egypt's Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek ordered an urgent investigation into the deadly explosion.
Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly headed to the hospital immediately following the explosion and directed doctors to provide all necessary medical care to all those injured. Minister of Health Hala Zayed also monitored the treatment and surgeries for the injured at the hospital. Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat also visited the hospital to follow up on the status of the injured.
Prime Minister Madbouly told reporters that all touristic trips and their routes are highly secured in a detailed manner by the interior ministry. Madbouly explained, however, that the bus carrying the Vietnamese tourists deviated from the pre-determined, secured route without notifying security officials.
On December 29, 2018, Egyptian police killed 40 alleged terrorists. The suspects were killed in separate raids in the Giza governorate, the scene of the deadly bombing, and in the Sinai Peninsula. Two raids in the Giza governorate killed 30 of the suspected terrorists, while the remaining ten were killed in North Sinai.
Terror Attacks against Tourists and Touristic Sites in Egypt
In July 2017, two German tourists were stabbed to death by a suspected jihadist at the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.
On July 14, 2017, gunmen riding a motorcycle opened fire on a security vehicle patrolling a Giza village near some of Egypt's oldest pyramids, killing five police. The attack took place in the village of Abusir in Badrashin, part of Greater Cairo, on a weekend in Egypt when there is little traffic on the streets. The slain policemen were part of the force tasked to guard the district of Saqqara, one of Egypt's most popular tourist sites and host to a collection of temples, tombs, and funerary complexes.
On January 9, 2016, three foreign tourists have been stabbed by two suspected Islamic State militants who stormed into a hotel in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Hurghada. The attackers, armed with knives, were shot by police at the Bella Vista Hotel after they attacked two Austrian guests and a Swede. One assailant was killed and the other injured. The attackers were aiming to kidnap tourists.
On January 7, 2016, masked gunmen shot at a tourist bus with Israeli tourists at the Three Pyramids Hotel near the Pyramids of Giza. No one was injured in the attack, for which ISIS claimed responsibility.
In October 2015, a bomb claimed by a local affiliate of the Islamic State group killed 224 people on board a passenger jet carrying Russian tourists home from the Sinai Peninsula. After the loss of the Russian plane, Russia, the UK, and other European countries halted flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, citing security fears.
Summary
Tourism is a pillar of Egypt's economy that employs millions of people. The industry has suffered from political instability and a fragile security situation since the 2011 uprising. The attack could impact an already struggling tourism industry. This is only the latest incident in a growing list of sporadic terrorist attacks carried out by jihadist terrorists, aimed at harming the government and driving away much-needed foreign investment and tourism.
Egypt has been seeking to lure tourists back by touting new archaeological discoveries and bolstering security around archaeological sites and in airports. While tourism has picked up since 2011, the 8.2 million people who visited Egypt in 2017 are still a far cry from the 14.7 million who visited in the year before the uprising.
Egypt has battled Islamic terror for years in the Sinai Peninsula in an insurgency that has occasionally spilled over to the mainland, hitting minority Christians or tourists. This is the first attack to target foreign tourists since 2017.
The Egyptian army launched a large-scale operation dubbed “Sinai 2018” in February 2018 to rid the Sinai of jihadists after an attack on a mosque in the north of the peninsula killed more than 300 people. The army says that hundreds of suspected jihadists have been killed or arrested since the campaign was launched but the war against terror is far from being over.
[Sources: Ahram Online, The New Arab, Sunday Times, An Nahar, BBC, The Telegraph]
A roadside bomb hit a tourist bus on Friday near the Giza Pyramids, killing three Vietnamese and their Egyptian guide. This is the first attack to target foreign tourists since 2017
Security forces stand near a tourist bus after a roadside bomb in an area near the Giza Pyramids (Photo: AP)
Egyptian security officials said a roadside bomb had hit a tourist bus on December 28, 2018, in an area near the Giza Pyramids, killing four people, three Vietnamese and one Egyptian, and wounding 11 others. The bus with 14 tourists from Vietnam was traveling in the Marioutiyah area near the pyramids when the roadside bomb went off. The improvised explosive device (IED) was placed near a wall along Mariyutiya Street in the Haram district near the Giza Pyramids.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, the first attack to target tourists since 2017.
The Egyptian Response
Security forces were immediately dispatched to the area and all the injured have been transported to the El-Haram hospital in Egypt's Giza governorate. Shortly after the attack, Egypt's Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek ordered an urgent investigation into the deadly explosion.
Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly headed to the hospital immediately following the explosion and directed doctors to provide all necessary medical care to all those injured. Minister of Health Hala Zayed also monitored the treatment and surgeries for the injured at the hospital. Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat also visited the hospital to follow up on the status of the injured.
Prime Minister Madbouly told reporters that all touristic trips and their routes are highly secured in a detailed manner by the interior ministry. Madbouly explained, however, that the bus carrying the Vietnamese tourists deviated from the pre-determined, secured route without notifying security officials.
On December 29, 2018, Egyptian police killed 40 alleged terrorists. The suspects were killed in separate raids in the Giza governorate, the scene of the deadly bombing, and in the Sinai Peninsula. Two raids in the Giza governorate killed 30 of the suspected terrorists, while the remaining ten were killed in North Sinai.
Terror Attacks against Tourists and Touristic Sites in Egypt
In July 2017, two German tourists were stabbed to death by a suspected jihadist at the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.
On July 14, 2017, gunmen riding a motorcycle opened fire on a security vehicle patrolling a Giza village near some of Egypt's oldest pyramids, killing five police. The attack took place in the village of Abusir in Badrashin, part of Greater Cairo, on a weekend in Egypt when there is little traffic on the streets. The slain policemen were part of the force tasked to guard the district of Saqqara, one of Egypt's most popular tourist sites and host to a collection of temples, tombs, and funerary complexes.
On January 9, 2016, three foreign tourists have been stabbed by two suspected Islamic State militants who stormed into a hotel in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Hurghada. The attackers, armed with knives, were shot by police at the Bella Vista Hotel after they attacked two Austrian guests and a Swede. One assailant was killed and the other injured. The attackers were aiming to kidnap tourists.
On January 7, 2016, masked gunmen shot at a tourist bus with Israeli tourists at the Three Pyramids Hotel near the Pyramids of Giza. No one was injured in the attack, for which ISIS claimed responsibility.
In October 2015, a bomb claimed by a local affiliate of the Islamic State group killed 224 people on board a passenger jet carrying Russian tourists home from the Sinai Peninsula. After the loss of the Russian plane, Russia, the UK, and other European countries halted flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, citing security fears.
Summary
Tourism is a pillar of Egypt's economy that employs millions of people. The industry has suffered from political instability and a fragile security situation since the 2011 uprising. The attack could impact an already struggling tourism industry. This is only the latest incident in a growing list of sporadic terrorist attacks carried out by jihadist terrorists, aimed at harming the government and driving away much-needed foreign investment and tourism.
Egypt has been seeking to lure tourists back by touting new archaeological discoveries and bolstering security around archaeological sites and in airports. While tourism has picked up since 2011, the 8.2 million people who visited Egypt in 2017 are still a far cry from the 14.7 million who visited in the year before the uprising.
Egypt has battled Islamic terror for years in the Sinai Peninsula in an insurgency that has occasionally spilled over to the mainland, hitting minority Christians or tourists. This is the first attack to target foreign tourists since 2017.
The Egyptian army launched a large-scale operation dubbed “Sinai 2018” in February 2018 to rid the Sinai of jihadists after an attack on a mosque in the north of the peninsula killed more than 300 people. The army says that hundreds of suspected jihadists have been killed or arrested since the campaign was launched but the war against terror is far from being over.
[Sources: Ahram Online, The New Arab, Sunday Times, An Nahar, BBC, The Telegraph]
