Tourism Minister Zoheir Garranah ordered that all beaches near Egypt's Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh be closed to the public and all maritime activities–including diving–be halted until the authorities could track down a shark that killed a German national on Sunday.
The woman had been swimming on the beach in front of Sharm el-Sheikh's Hayat Regency Hotel when she was attacked.
The 70-year-old tourist, whose leg and hand were bitten off in the attack, died immediately. Her body was taken to a local morgue and the German Embassy in Cairo notified.
Last week, three Russian nationals and a Ukrainian vacationing in Sharm al-Sheikh were similarly attacked by sharks. They were subsequently taken to hospital where they received medical treatment.
