EGYPT: The confusing fate of kidnapped tourists

The fate of 11 Europeans and eight Egyptians kidnapped by masked bandits is unfolding amid sharp rocks and painted caves in a Sahara desert that is at once sparsely majestic and disorientating -- much like the information released about the hostages by the Egyptian government.

In a confusing swirl of developments in recent days, the tourists were reported kidnapped, then freed, then not freed. The latest is that the German government is negotiating to release five Germans, five Italians, one Romanian and eight Egyptians who were snatched Friday near Gilf Al-Kebir in remote southwest Egypt.

“The location of the kidnappers has been pinpointed. It’s a no-man’s land between the Sudan, Libya and Egypt borders,” Boutros Sadiq, Sudan’s undersecretary of foreign affairs told journalists Tuesday. “We are not going to have an operation that harms the tourists.”

Arab media reports say the abductors are asking for a $6-million to $16-million ransom and have threatened to kill the hostages if police or security forces attempt a rescue.

“We are coordinating fully with the Sudanese government,” said Egyptian Tourism Minister Zohair Garana. “However, currently, the German government is in touch with the kidnappers and negotiating the best way to release the kidnapped.”

The ordeal has embarrassed the Egyptian government, which relies heavily on tourism that brings in nearly $8 billion a year. On Monday, Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit announced that the captives had been released and were “safe and sound.”

That assertion was quickly corrected by an Egyptian Cabinet minister and the tourism ministry, both of which described Gheit’s comments as premature. The different ministries in the government do agree on one thing -– the kidnappers are most likely bandits and tribesmen, not Islamic militants.

European governments have paid ransoms in the past, especially in the harsh, dangerous outbacks of North Africa. 

— Jeffrey Fleishman in Cairo

Photo: A tourist caravan in southwest Egypt. Credit: BBC

P.S. Get news from the Middle East in your mailbox every day. The Los Angeles Times distributes a free daily newsletter with the latest headlines from the Middle East, as well as the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. You can subscribe by logging in at the website here, clicking on the box for "L.A. Times updates," and then clicking on the "World: Mideast" box.

Comments

[caravan holidays]

Hi,

Egypt is still working for the release of 11 kidnapped European tourists, the official MENA news agency said Tuesday, despite an announcement they had been freed along with eight Egyptians.
caravan holidays

[Jenny Bowker]

I visited Gilf Kebir late 2007. Check my blog, and start with the entry on 27th November, then work your way up for photos of the trip and the area.

It is not surprising that there is total confusion - it is a good three days of hard desert driving from the nearest town.

It sounds as if people have not been moved far from their first camp. It would only be twenty kilometres from Kharkur Tul into Sudan - and it was always confusing to work out exactly where the main camping locations were.

All food, water and petrol have to be carried into the area - it will be difficult to keep them there for very long in the heat of September.

The place is just spectacular.