Tourists Stabbed in Egypt Attack

Two assailants armed with a gun, a knife and a suicide belt attacked a hotel in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Hurghada on Friday, wounding two foreign tourists, security sources said.

When the attack took place on Friday, Sammie and his father Jan-Eric Olovsson, 64, from Boxholm, were in the restaurant at the Bella Vista hotel in Hurghada.

The Islamic State group claimed credit for that attack, which they said targeted “Jewish” tourists.

Both attackers, it said, carried knives and pellet guns.

Security sources had earlier said two tourists had been injured, one from Germany and one from Denmark.

The Interior Ministry had said that one of the attackers was a student from Giza.

Nine Egyptians were sentenced in November to life in prison for their involvement in the failed attack, while two others were jailed for seven years.

This new attack is likely to have a negative impact on tourism sector which is already suffering political violence and instability.

AP reported that they had likely planned to kidnap tourists before they were thwarted by security personnel.

Hurghada, however, has continued to attract some tourists. “No stone will be left unturned to ensure their security”, Zaazou said.

But a statement on the Bella Vista Resort’s official Facebook page claimed to tell the “true story” of the ordeal, which said it was over in four minutes.

About 1,500 British tourists are now estimated to be in Hurghada, which is one of the most popular Red Sea resorts with British tourists after Sharm el Sheikh.

It said it was past year that killed 224 people.

Both were equipped with knives and reports say the IS flag was lifted by them.

It was the second attack in as many days on holidaymakers in Egypt, where vital tourist revenues have slumped since a Russian passenger jet plane crashed with the Islamic State group claiming to have downed it.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

The latest attack happened on the day Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Christians celebrated Christmas in the mainly Muslim country.

The Foreign Office has not changed its travel advice and tour operators are still travelling to the area.

It now has about 3,100 German guests in Egypt, all of whom it said were fine.