Widespread anger follows Egyptian attacks

The lobby of the Ghazala Gardens bore the brunt of one of the attacks Keystone

World leaders have expressed outrage over Saturday’s bombings in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in which at least 88 people were killed.

A group close to the terror organisation al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for the attacks. There were an estimated 1,000 Swiss tourists in the Red Sea city at the time of the explosions but there were no reports of casualties among them.

Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak has vowed to hunt down those responsible for the attacks, which also injured more than 100 other people. The victims were mainly Egyptian nationals.

It was the worst ever attack on tourist targets in Egypt. Militant Islamists trying to bring down the government killed 58 tourists and four Egyptians at an ancient temple near Luxor in 1997.

The regional governor said two car bombs and possibly a suitcase bomb had rocked the resort that is popular with divers.

Luxury hotels

One blast tore the front off the Ghazala Gardens Hotel in Naama Bay, the site of most of the resort’s luxury hotels.

Egypt’s tourism minister worried that the attacks would hit the $6.6 billion (SFr8.55 billion) tourism industry, the country’s biggest private sector employer, in the short term.

The blasts came at a time when many tourists were still out in bars and markets in the popular and hitherto safe resort.

“Many of the injuries are very serious and they are in critical condition,” said a doctor at Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital.

Barbaric attack

The Swiss foreign ministry strongly condemned the “barbaric” attack on innocent civilians and said it was shocked at what had happened.

It said its crisis team was in permanent contact with the Swiss embassy in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, which had sent a representative to Sharm el-Sheikh.

In a statement, the ministry offered its condolences to the families and friends of the victims, and to the government and people of Egypt.

It added that it hoped that everything possible would be done to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Swiss tourists

About a quarter of the Swiss tourists in the resort – 226 people – had travelled with the Hotelplan tour operator and were in two hotels, the Ghazala Gardens and Iberot Palace.

Another 371 Swiss had flown with Switzerland’s largest operator, Kuoni, while about 200 others were customers of TUI.

Neither the tour operators nor the Swiss foreign ministry said they had heard reports of Swiss casualties.

And the Zurich-based Mövenpick group confirmed that its two hotels in the area had not been attacked, adding that all guests and staff were safe.

A care team from the Elvia holiday insurance firm flew on Saturday to Sharm el-Sheikh to look after the Swiss tourists.

Hotelplan and Kuoni announced that special flights had been arranged to bring home those who wished to return home as soon as possible.

The telephone hotline number set up by the Swiss tour operators is 044 283 39 99. The Swiss foreign ministry’s hotline for individual travellers is 031 324 98 08.

Key facts

Tour operators’ hotline:
044 283 39 99
Hotline of the Swiss foreign ministry:
031 324 98 08

In brief

A group of Islamic extremists opened fire on a group of tourists near Luxor on November 17 1997, killing 62 people, including 36 Swiss.

Swiss tourists avoided Egypt as a holiday destination for several years after the attack.

The last serious attack was on October 7 last year against the Hilton hotel in Taba, also on the Sinai peninsula, in which 34 people were killed.