The Egyptian government will spend US$32 million to upgrade security in two Red Sea resorts. The move, aimed at restoring confidence among foreign tourists, comes after recent attacks on hotels and the bombing of a Russian airplane.
The country’s tourism minister says upgraded security includes deploying additional security personnel and expanding the use of cameras, scanning and detection equipment, sniffer dogs in the towns of Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada, according to the Associated Press.
“The security of visitors to Egypt remains our highest priority,” tourism minister Hisham Zaazou said in a statement. “I believe that these new measures will further add to the security of our resorts while not being intrusive to tourists so they can get on with enjoying their holidays.”
Two attacks earlier this month targeted hotels frequented by foreign tourists in Cairo and Hurghada. No one was hurt in the Cairo attack, but three tourists were stabbed in Hurghada. Along with regional insurgencies, a Russian airliner was shot down in October, killing all 224 people on board. Extremists were blamed in that attack.