July 23, 2005

83 Die in Car Bombs at Egyptian Resort

A rapid series of car bombs and another blast ripped through a luxury hotel and a coffeeshop in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheik early Saturday, killing at least 83, a hospital official said. Terrified European and Arab tourists fled into the night, and rescue workers said the death toll could still rise.
[It's been rising all night from 45, to 75, now 83...horrible.--Jen]

The attack, Egypt's deadliest terror hit ever, appeared well coordinated. Two car bombs, possibly by suicide attackers, went off simultaneously at 1:15 a.m. just more than 2 miles apart. A third bomb, believed hidden in a sack, detonated around the same time near a beachside walkway where tourists often stroll at night.
[Charming. Wonder if anyone will stroll there ever again?]

A total of 83 people had been confirmed dead, said Dr. Saeed Abdel Fattah, manager of the Sharm el-Sheik International Hospital where the victims were taken. Among the dead were two Britons, two Germans and an Italian, he added, and Czech officials said one Czech tourist was also killed. Rescue workers were still searching for victims at some attack scenes.

Several hours after the attacks, a group citing ties to al-Qaida
[This is a phrase we're all too familiar with by now, isn't it?]
claimed responsibility for the explosion on an Islamic web site. The group, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, al-Qaida, in Syria and Egypt, was one of two extremist groups that also claimed responsibility for October bombings at the Egyptian resorts of Taba and Ras Shitan that killed 34. The group also claimed responsbility for a Cairo bombing in late April.
[...]
The United States, Israel and European and Middle Eastern countries condemned the attacks, and neighboring Jordan said it was immediately tightening security at its tourist sites.
Pope Benedict XVI deplored the attacks, calling them "senseless acts," and appealed to terrorists to renounce violence.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak flew into Sharm el-Sheik and went directly to inspect the scene at the Ghazala hotel. Heavily armed security forces guarded Mubarak as he walked past the bomb-ravaged complex and spoke with officials.
[...]
In addition to the 83 known dead, at least 119 others were wounded, the Egyptian Interior Ministry said.
At least eight foreigners were among the dead, Al-Adli said. The dead included British, Dutch, Kuwaitis, Saudis and Qataris, one security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was giving information not yet included in the official statement.
[We've got Muslims killing Muslims again, as well as kaffir and infidels.]
[...]
"The country's going to come to a stop. That's it!" sobbed Samir al-Mitwalli, who arrived in Sharm only a month ago to work as a driver. "Who's paying the price? ... Whoever did this wants to destroy the economy."
[Uh, yes. They want to punish Egyptian "collaborators" for profiting from non-Muslims in non-Islamic acitivities like going to nightclubs and women swimming in revealing bathing suits.]
The string of attacks stunned a town that has long been dedicated to scuba diving at the famed coral reefs.

Sharm el-Sheik has expanded at a furious pace in recent years, making it a major player in Egypt's vital tourism industry, drawing Europeans, Israelis and Arabs from oil-producing Gulf nations. Mubarak has a residence where he spends the winter, and the town has been the host to multiple summits for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
[Don't forget: President Bush was here for a conference with Arab leaders only 2 years ago!]
The attacks last fall in Taba ended a long halt in Egyptian militant violence. The last major attack had been in 1997, when Islamic militants killed 58 foreign tourists and four Egyptians at the Pharaonic Temple of Hatshepsut outside Luxor in southern Egypt.
[This one gave me the chills, as I had been to this very place in 1988.
The terrorist killers just opened fire on unarmed, unsuspecting tourists (like I was!) and gunned them down.]

"This is a security farce," said Omar Ezzideen, owner of a children's clothing store in a nearby mall whose windows were shattered. "How can something like this happen here? How could (explosives) enter here? The national economy is based on this."

The terrorists are busy, spreading death, suffering and fear everywhere, aren't they?
Not only were there these bombings in Sharm yesterday, but there was also a bomb in Beirut right after Dr. Condi Rice paid a surprise visit and of course, there were the failed attempts in London the day before that.
As I remarked below, I think this Sharm attack is definitely related to the Israeli pullout from Gaza, targeting as it does the meeting place for various talks on Arab-Israeli peace in the past few years.
(But Hamas has denounced the bombings, so this wasn't their handiwork...or was it?)
It's also to punish Muburak for working with the Israelis and for oppressing the terrorists' brothers who Hosni prefers to keep under lock and key, given what happened to his predecessor.
I'm getting fairly scared myself of late as you just can't tell where the next bombs will go off anymore.
I said that it would be get pretty rough as Israel and the Paleostinians approach the August 17 withdrawal date, so hold onto yourselves.
Let's pray for more 7/21's, where the jihadis failed miserably to pull off their attacks and hurt no-one.