responsibility Saturday, July 23 for multiple bombs which killed at least 88 people and injured 110 at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el- Sheikh, in what was seen as a "terrorist punishment" for Egypt’s involvement in Iraq and a peace settlement in Israel.
It was the meeting place where world leaders tried to hammer out a Middle East peace agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas met there in February this year and agreed to a cease-fire.
The group, calling itself the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, al Qaeda, in Syria and Egypt, reportedly said that its "holy warriors targeted the Ghazala Gardens hotel and the Old Market in Sharm El Sheikh." Three nearly-simultaneous explosions tore through the lobby of the luxury hotel, a parking lot and a market in Sharm el-Sheikh, just after 1:00 a.m. local time Saturday, July 23. At least two of the explosions are believed to be car bombs, the Voice Of America (VOA) network reported.
"We declare it loud and clear that we will not be frightened by the whips of the Egyptian torturers and we will not tolerate violation of our brothers’ land of Sinai," the statement reportedly added in an apparent reference to tourists who travel from neighboring Israel to Sinai Peninsula for holidays.
ISRAEL CONNECTION
The attacks "may be connected to the bombings in other Red Sea resorts in October last year in which 34 people, including Israeli tourists, were killed," Egypt’s Interior Minister Habib al-Adly was quoted as saying earlier by Egyptian media.
The brigades were one of two Islamist groups that claimed responsibility for the October 7 bombings at Sinai Peninsula Taba and Ras Shitan that killed 34 people, news reports said.
It was not clear how many Israeli citizens or Jewish people from other nations were killed or injured. So far thirteen Italians, five British nationals, three Spaniards, three Saudis, a Ukrainian, a Russian, a Turk and one Israeli were reportedly discovered among the wounded, Egypt’s tourism ministry was reported as saying.
EGYPT’S ROLE
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said however that the wave of bombings in the popular Red Sea resort town have only increased his determination to battle and defeat terrorists.
Egypt was the first Arab country to recognize Israel after signing a Washington brokered peace agreement in 1979. The country has also been condemned by al-Qaeda for its involvement in the US-led operations in Iraq and one of its leading diplomats there was recently killed.
Referring to Egypt’s role in that part of the world, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, al Qaida, in Syria and Egypt, said that its reaffirms that the bombings were "in response to the crimes committed by the forces of international evil, which are spilling the blood of Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan and Chechnya."
“Your brothers, the holy warriors of the martyr Abdullah Azzam Brigades succeeded in launching a smashing attack on the Crusaders, Zionists and the renegade Egyptian regime in Sharm El Sheikh,” the statement reportedly added. Its authenticity could not be verified immediately.
ISLAMIC MILITANTS
The Abdullah Azzam Brigades are apparently named after Abdullah Azzam, a Palestinian militant who led Islamic militants in Afghanistan and was killed in 1989 by a roadside bomb, and was regarded as the one-time “spiritual mentor” of al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, analysts said.
Azzam reportedly studied Islamic theology in Egypt before traveling to Saudi Arabia where he lectured in Islamic law. During the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Azzam was financed by Saudi Arabia and other Islamic states to establish camps for Muslim militants who joined the fight against the Russian forces.
The attacks were condemned by United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who visited neighboring Israel Saturday, July 23. "I condemn the horrific terrorist bombings in Sharm el-Sheikh, our thoughts and prayers are with the families and innocent victims from many nations who suffered in this senseless attack," Rice reportedly said ahead of a visit to the West Bank to meet Palestinian leaders.
"CONFRONT AND DEFEAT"
"At this difficult time of testing, the United States stands with our friend and ally Egypt. Together we will confront and defeat this scourge that knows no boundary and respects no creed," the Agency France Presse (AFP) quoted Rice as saying.
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan expressed his "sorrow and anger" at the bombings, AFP reported. The attack in Egypt came hours after at least a dozen people were injured when a bomb rocked an area of restaurants and bars in Lebanon’s capital Beirut.
The Associated Press (AP) said one person had been killed, though police officers at the scene could not confirm that report. It was also expected to add to concern among the country’s Christians as several attacks have happened in Christian neighborhoods and used in assassinations in the last few months. (With BosNewsLife Research, BosNewsLife News Center and reports from Egypt, Israel and Lebanon).
