EGYPT-VIOLENCE/MEXICANS-HOSPITAL Five Mexicans in Cairo hospital after Egyptian forces accidentally shoot tourists

Record ID: 141133

  • Title: EGYPT-VIOLENCE/MEXICANS-HOSPITAL Five Mexicans in Cairo hospital after Egyptian forces accidentally shoot tourists
  • Date: 14th September 2015
  • Summary: CAIRO, EGYPT (SEPTEMBER 14, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF DAR AL FOUAD HOSPITAL EXTERIOR OF MEXICAN EMBASSY MEXICAN FLAG OUTSIDE EMBASSY VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF MEXICAN EMBASSY MEXICAN FLAG EXTERIOR OF MEXICAN EMBASSY SIGN READING (Arabic): "Mexican Embassy" EXTERIOR OF MEXICAN EMBASSY
  • Embargoed: 29th September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Egypt
  • Country: Egypt
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA8SNJG7E7FO429X132OAW07ZDL
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Egyptian security forces opened fire on a group of tourists in the desert on Monday (September 14), after mistaking the convoy for militants.
    At least two Mexicans were among the 12 killed, while 10 others injured in the accident.
    A joint force from the Egyptian police and military was chasing militants in the country's vast western desert, which borders Libya, when it inadvertently opened fire on the convoy, which was made up of four four-wheel drive vehicles.
    Egypt's tourism ministry spokesman told state news agency MENA the convoy was at an off-limits site and was using unlicensed cars. The convoy was taking part in an unapproved safari, he said.
    Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto condemned the attack on his Twitter account, describing it as a tragic incident and demanding a full investigation.
    "Mexico condemns these deeds against our citizens and has demanded an exhaustive investigation of what has occurred," he tweeted.
    The Egyptian interior ministry confirmed in a statement that there will indeed be an investigation into how and why the tourists entered an off-limits area.
    Mexican ambassador Jorge Alvarez met with five Mexicans who were in a stable condition in Cairo's Dar al Fouad hospital, Mexico's foreign ministry said.
    The Mexican ministry said an "undetermined" number of its country's nationals had been attacked and that it was in the process of identifying the two who had been killed.
    Egypt is battling an insurgency that gained pace after the military ousted Islamist President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in mid-2013 after mass protests against his rule.
    The insurgency, mounted by the Islamic State group's Egyptian affiliate, has killed hundreds of soldiers and police and has started to attack Western targets.
    On Sunday (September 13), the Islamic State released a statement carried by its supporters on Twitter saying it had repelled an attack by the Egyptian military in the western desert.
    While the insurgency has been largely based in the Sinai Peninsula, attacks have taken place in Cairo and other cities.
    In August, an Egyptian military aircraft crashed in the western desert near the Libyan border while on a mission against Islamist militants, killing four people.
    Security officials say militants operating from Libya to the west of Egypt have been trying to forge ties with Islamists in the Sinai on the east side of the country.
    Egyptian jets bombed Islamic State targets in Libya in February, a day after the group there released a video showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians, drawing Cairo directly into factional conflict across its border.
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