Mexican FM, victims’ family travel to Egypt

With six wounded, that would at least leave five unaccounted for.

The tour group had been travelling in a convoy of four 4x4s near the Bahariya oasis, a popular tourist location. Analysts say it also calls into question the training of Egypt security forces now conducting major military operations in the Western Desert and in the Sinai Peninsula along Egypt’s eastern border.

Egypt’s ambassador to Mexico, Yasser Shaban, claims Egypt was taking the incident very seriously and was still attempting to discover what exactly happened.

Six other Mexicans were wounded in the attack.

Its website describes Rojas as a woman who is “dedicated, entrepreneurial and above all visionary”, and “one of the best known modeling agents in all of Mexico”. Stewart says Marisela, who also took part in the trip, was recovering from wounds suffered in the attack. “It was a spiritual journey”, he said.

Bejarano’s sister, Gabriela Bejarano, was obviously doubting the Egyptian government’s report.

Meanwhile, Egypt’s Interior Ministry has said that the vehicles were “mistakenly dealt with” in a security operation that involved both armed forces and military police. Ten other people were wounded, including six Mexicans.

Egyptian officials put the number of Mexicans killed at eight, but Mexico has so far only confirmed two dead.

The brief message was posted on the embassy’s website.

She is expected in Cairo at 2200 GMT, a Mexican official told AFP.

Rius Massieu spoke at a press conference Wednesday with her Egyptian counterpart.

She said her ministry delivered a diplomatic note to the Egyptian ambassador in which the Mexican government expresses its “deep dismay over these deplorable events” and demands an investigation.

Egyptian officials have said they will create an investigative committee headed by the prime minister.

“We are standing next to the Mexican people in their tragedy”.

The foreign minister appeared to be justifying their deaths, saying that in Egypt many innocent civilians have died in the midst of violence caused by terrorists. It said in a statement that the victims were still being identified, and Foreign Ministry personnel were working with the families of the victims.

Pena Nieto over the phone on Tuesday expressed “Mexican society’s pain and indignation” at the accidental killing of eight nationals visiting Egypt, reported Xinhua news agency.

Security forces in Egypt have killed 12 people including foreign tourists in the Western Desert of the country, mistaking them to be terrorists.

An Egyptian helicopter strike on desert trekkers misidentified as militants has highlighted the government’s struggle to contain Islamist insurgents whose geographic reach appears to have expanded in recent months.

Al Jazeera’s John Holman, reporting from Oaxaca in Mexico, said the Mexican government had demanded a thorough investigation into the incident.

He said his colleague worked as a tour guide and a hotel manager, adding that he was on a safari in the desert but was killed by Egyptian forces.