Sahara tourists are held captive after being seized by ‘band of gangsters’

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Title – Sahara tourists are held captive after being seized by ‘band of gangsters’
Source – The Times
Date – 23rd September 2008

Egypt has a history of sporadic terrorist attacks, generally these are centred on the tourist hotspots for maximum impact and it should not be understated that these attacks are sporadic with the Egyptian government taking ‘strong’ steps to secure these areas.

The Egyptian government tightened up security on those classic tourist attractions, the pyramids, temples and other famous monuments. They tightened it up to the point where some tourists actually found it oppressive. In more recent year terrorists have tended to favour the ‘softer’ targets of the red sea resorts; now we are in the era of the suicide bomber; anywhere is a potential terrorist target.

Travellers to Egypt will remain in the terrorist crosshairs for the foreseeable future; that does not however mean that travellers should not visit. Millions of people visit Egypt every year and there are many other dangers that should be considered before terrorism. Egypt suffers one of the world’s worst road fatality rates and recent events highlighted this when 9 tourists died and 28 were injured in a road accident in May 2008.

In this case it does seem that the kidnappers were not terrorists so much as ‘bandits’ kidnapping for ransom; a threat that was not without precedent, but equally is not a common problem in Egypt.

Egypt’s location in the world should be considered when travelling outside of the areas that are well ‘policed’ by the Egyptian authorities. To the west lies Libya, once a sponsor of terrorism, now a ‘friend’ of the west but with growing internal instability; To the south Sudan and the lawless Darfur region with all its well documented problems; just south of Sudan lies Somalia a country that should be used as an example to all anarchists demonstrating exactly what happens when there is no effective government for the best part of 20 years. Run by warlords, piracy, murder, extrajudicial killings and terrorism are rife in Somalia.

Choosing your destination well is the first step to Safe Travel. This tour group did have an armed guard with them, but this was no match for the well armed bandits that roam these regions. Borders simply are not controlled and the rule of law is almost impossible to enforce. Fortunately this group have all subsequently been released / freed (depending on whose account you believe) but this is generally an area that can not and certainly should not be explored independently.

At Beyond The Blue we run Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshops (GYITSA) for anyone planning independent travel, a gap year or a Career Break. During our workshop we provide Destination Advice and examine personal safety skills as well as practical advice for travellers ranging from Travel Health to Transport Option and from Women Travellers to Travel Equipment. By the time you leave you will have the skills and knowledge to plan and execute your travel more safely and with greater confidence.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us on Facebook. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.