2:12AM
Bombings in Sharm Al Sheikh
Issandr El Amrani
About half an hour ago, five explosions went off in Sharm Al Sheikh. There are three casualties for now, according to AFP and Al Jazeera.
I have little info to add, except that:
1. These are the first bomb attacks in Sinai since last October's Taba bombings;
2. It's worrying that Sharm is attacked because it's the crown jewel of Egyptian resort tourism;
3. President Mubarak spends a lot of time there.
This is supposed to be the most secure resort in Egypt -- hence the significance of an attack. It's also not a resort that attracts a lot of Israeli tourists, compared to Taba. Most tourists there are European, particularly Italian, French and German.
More in the morning, as it's just past 2am here.
Update: The death toll has risen to 50 (at 9am) and will probably continue to rise. A lot of severely wounded people among the 200 or so wounded.
A thought: is it a sheer coincidence that today is the anniversary of the 23 July 1952 coup by the Free Officers that brought the current regime to power?
I have little info to add, except that:
1. These are the first bomb attacks in Sinai since last October's Taba bombings;
2. It's worrying that Sharm is attacked because it's the crown jewel of Egyptian resort tourism;
3. President Mubarak spends a lot of time there.
This is supposed to be the most secure resort in Egypt -- hence the significance of an attack. It's also not a resort that attracts a lot of Israeli tourists, compared to Taba. Most tourists there are European, particularly Italian, French and German.
More in the morning, as it's just past 2am here.
Update: The death toll has risen to 50 (at 9am) and will probably continue to rise. A lot of severely wounded people among the 200 or so wounded.
A thought: is it a sheer coincidence that today is the anniversary of the 23 July 1952 coup by the Free Officers that brought the current regime to power?
Reader Comments (4)
Stay safe.
To all Egyptians that read this.
Set up a protest against terrorism tomorrow in the streets of Cairo. Do it. Call everyone you know, join together, link up this Egyptian blogosphere and to the streets.
Karim Elsahy
One thing I noticed was that Interior Minister Habib Al-Adly was very vigorous in denying any connections to the London bombings.
[...] sgnosis: “The Cancer Within: Egyptians Speak Up!” The Arabist Network makes a few points regarding the significance of these attacks. Iraq the Model indic [...]