Egypt's tourism ministry investigating alleged rape case in Sharm El-Sheikh
Ministry is working with British embassy and local tourism police to investigate alleged rape of a 40-year-old British woman at a five-star hotel in the Red Sea resort town
Ahram Online, Monday 24 Mar 2014
Egypt's tourism ministry announced on Monday that it was investigating the alleged rape of a British holidaymaker in the Sinai resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh.
“We are following the case with the British embassy and local tourism police, and the case is currently under investigation,” tourism ministry spokesperson Rasha El-Azazy told Ahram Online.
A severe punishment will be imposed if the ministry confirms the crime's circumstances, El-Azazy added.
The victim, a businesswoman in her 40s, says she was raped by a security guard at a five-star hotel in the Red Sea resort town, the Daily Mail reported on Sunday.
The guard was escorting the woman back to the hotel when he allegedly pulled her into her bedroom and subjected her to the brutal assault, according to the Daily Mail.
The woman has since left Egypt.
The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office says reports of sexual assault against British nationals in Egypt have increased since the January 2011 uprising. In 2012, the office handled 23 cases of sexual assault and six cases of rape.
In May 2013, Egypt's tourism minister Hisham Zaazou told Ahram Online that hotels would be closed if staff were found to have sexually harassed tourists, arguing that the behaviour would have a negative impact on the country's reputation.
The tourism ministry has recorded 150 cases of sexual harassment against tourists over the last two years. There have also been three recorded rapes.
２．ラマダン月は一般的にテロ等の危険が高まる傾向にあります。「Hasam Movement」を名乗るテロ組織が、場所及び標的等の詳細は不明ですが、本日（２４日）午後７時にテロを予告しているとの報道等があります。更には、６ｔｈ October City で連続発砲事件も起きております。
在留邦人の皆さまにおかれましては、上記情勢に十分留意のうえ、テロの標的になりやすい教会、軍・警察・司法等の政府関係機関の施設や車両、検問所、主要インフラ施設等には近づかないようにするとともに、外国人を含めた不特定多数の人が集まる場所においては、周囲の状況に注意を払い、不審な状況を察知したら速やかにその場を離れるなど、不測の事態に巻き込まれないよう安全確保に努めてください。
