The Egyptian authorities have banned fishing and swimming near a popular Red Sea destination for 15 days after a recent shark attack last weekend. The shark attack occurred off Ain Sokhna, a popular tourist spot 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
An Egyptian man was bitten by a shark when he was swimming and two officials have directly investigated the attack. Omar Abdel Qader, a 23- year-old Egyptian man, who was on a vacation with his friends, and he had jumped from a rented motorboat floating about four miles from shore and into the waters of the Gulf of Suez for a swim. The shark attacked his left leg, which had to be amputated.
In response, Egypt’s Environment Ministry imposed a ban on Monday. Environment Ministry officials Mohamed Salem and Beily Hatab said that the attack was likely caused by the combination of fishing and swimming in the same spot.
In fact, shark attacks are not common in Egypt. According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, the country ranks the 12th among the most dangerous countries for shark attacks. On the top of the list is the United States with 1,301 recorded attacks, followed by Australia (593) and South Africa (249). According to reports, 18 shark attacks have been recorded in Egypt.
A German woman was killed and three Russian tourists were seriously injured in shark attacks off the coast of Sharm el-Sheikh, another popular beach destination in Egypt in 2010. In 2015, a 52-years-old German tourist died after a shark bit off his leg at the knee in the waters off al-Qusair.
After the 2010 incident, local diving experts said single shark attacks were very rare in the area and were puzzled as to why so many people were attacked in such quick succession.
