ZCZC
BFF-35
EGYPT-TOURISM-BLAST
Blast hits Egypt tourist bus, 17 injured: security, medical sources
CAIRO, May 19, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – An explosion struck a tourist bus on Sunday
near Egypt’s famed pyramids, injuring 17 people including foreigners,
security and medical sources said.
South Africans and Egyptians were among those injured when an explosive
device went off, hitting the bus in Giza, according to the sources. No deaths
were reported.
Images circulating online showed some of the bus’ windows shattered.
Sunday’s incident comes after three Vietnamese holidaymakers and their
Egyptian guide were killed when a roadside bomb hit their bus as it travelled
near the pyramids outside Cairo in December.
Egypt’s tourism sector has suffered for years due to a series of deadly
attacks targeting holidaymakers following the turmoil of the 2011 uprising
that toppled longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak.
Authorities have gone to great lengths to lure tourists back, touting a
series of archaeological finds and a new museum next to the pyramids, as well
as enhanced security at airports and around ancient sites.
The industry has slowly picked up, with tourist arrivals reaching 8.3
million in 2017, compared with 5.3 million the previous year, official
statistics showed.
But that figure was still far short of the record influx of 2010 when more
than 14 million visitors flocked to see the country’s sites.
BSS/AFP/ARS/2032 hrs