Margret Awad, owner of Craft tourist agency and the Taba tourist bus that was bombed, said that tourist buses are not secured enough by tourism police.
The tourist bus was hit on Sunday by a blast near the city Taba in Egypt. Four persons, including three South Koreans and the Egyptian driver, were killed and another 14 injured. The bombing is believed to have been carried out by a suicide bomber.
Awad accused the Interior Ministry of being "reluctant" in securing tourist groups in Sinai and wondered, “How could the bus have exploded if there had been high security provided by the ministry?”
“There’s huge negligence from policemen in securing the tourist buses. The proof is that they allowed a civilian wearing an explosive belt to get on and explode himself, though four vehicles were in charge of securing the bus and the accident took place 10 meters away from the exit surrounded by policemen,” Awad told Al-Masry Al-Youm in a phone call.
“I did not receive any calls from the tourism minister or any official since the accident even for a comment,” she said. She estimated the losses of her company after the blast at LE2 million, including the cost of the bus and the insurance on the bus and the driver. She also complained that neither the South Sinai governorate nor security services helped in removing the damaged bus since the accident.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
