U.S. Department of State Country Reports on Terrorism 2005 - Egypt

Egypt experienced several terrorist attacks. In April, there were three attacks on crowded tourist destinations in Cairo. On April 7, a lone suicide bomber killed three foreigners, including an American, at the Khan el-Khalili market; several other Americans were seriously injured in this incident.

On July 23, three bombs exploded in Sharm el-Sheikh, at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula, killing 67, including one American. Hundreds of Egyptians and a number of foreign tourists were also injured as a result of the blasts. One vehicle penetrated security positions along the driveway of a hotel and detonated in the lobby area. Another vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) exploded on a street in the old section of Sharm el-Sheikh. A third bomb was concealed in a bag that exploded in a pedestrian area frequented by tourists. There was no evidence these attacks were directed at Americans, but they were widely regarded as targeting the Egyptian tourism industry.

On August 15, near the Rafah border crossing into the Gaza Strip, a small improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near a Multinational Force and Observers vehicle, causing minor injuries to its occupants. This incident was preceded by the discovery of a one-ton cache of explosives in El Arish, on the Mediterranean coast of the Sinai. Separately, on August 13, an intercity bus was shot at on a road crossing the Sinai.

Counterterrorism success stories included two related but unsuccessful attempts to target tourists near the Citadel and the Egyptian Museum that were thwarted by Egyptian authorities. Only the perpetrators of the incidents were killed in the failed attempts; the government described both as the remaining members of the terrorist cell responsible for the April 7 bombing.

Between August and late November, the Egyptian Government conducted an intensive security operation in Jebel Helal, a remote region in northeast Sinai, in pursuit of fugitives from a Salafist-Bedouin group suspected of links to the terrorist incidents cited above and to other crimes. During the course of this operation, several Egyptian security personnel, including two high-ranking police officers, were killed. In separate skirmishes, several of the fugitives were shot and killed, including Salim Khadr Al-Shanoub and Khalid Musa'id, whom the government identified as key planners of the July Sharm el-Sheikh attacks and three 2004 attacks in Taba involving tourism interests. The Egyptian Government maintained that all of the terrorist incidents that occurred in 2004-05 were conducted by small domestic groups.

During his campaign for the September 7 presidential elections, President Mubarak called for new "anti-terrorism" legislation to replace the decades-old Emergency Law, emphasizing that constitutional and legislative reforms were needed to eliminate terrorism. In explaining his proposal, Mubarak said, "the time has come to create a decisive mechanism to fight terrorism." While defending the use of the Emergency Law, President Mubarak said Egypt should follow the example of other countries that recently passed comprehensive laws to combat terrorism. The Egyptian judicial system does not allow plea bargaining, and historically terrorists have been prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Terrorism defendants may be tried in military tribunals or emergency courts.

Egypt continued to enforce an enhanced security posture for its airports, seaports, and the Suez Canal.