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| Africa: North | |||
| Sinai bus blast fears played down | |||
| 2005-08-15 | |||
Egyptian authorities say there has been a serious incident near the airport used by the multinational observer force in the Sinai Peninsula. Initial reports indicating that a bus had exploded, causing casualties, have been denied by officials.
A vehicle carrying force personnel appeared to be hit by a blast about 1km outside the base which is near the town of el-Arish. Egyptian officials said that the explosion was likely to have been caused by an unexploded landmine left over from conflicts with Israel, but this could not be confirmed.
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| Posted by:Steve |
| #4 The explosion was caused by a natural gas canister that was planted on the roadside and detonated through a wire, Abdel Hamid said. A second wired canister failed to explode. Local security officials on the scene said the canisters had been filled with explosives. Gov. Abdel Hamid's contention that this was merely a warning, not an attack, doesn't seem borne up by the description. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-08-15 15:54 |
| #3 EL-ARISH, Egypt (CP) - Two Canadian members of an international peace-monitoring force in the Sinia were lightly wounded Monday when their vehicle was rocked by a crude roadside bomb near Egypt's border with the Gaza Strip, Egyptian officials said. The blast went off on a highway about three kilometres from an MFO base near the border with Gaza, hitting an MFO vehicle. Two Canadian women members of the MFO were slightly wounded and returned to duty afterward, the governor of North Sinai, Ahmed Abdel Hamid, told state TV. The explosion was caused by a natural gas canister that was planted on the roadside and detonated through a wire, Abdel Hamid said. A second wired canister failed to explode. Local security officials on the scene said the canisters had been filled with explosives. Well, there goes the "left-over land mine theory. Investigators at the scene found a white mini-bus bearing the MFO logo. It had flat tires and broken windows but no sign of fire. The explosion left a small crater beside the road. MFO spokesman Ian Baxendell confirmed that two MFO members were "very lightly injured." But he had no further details and could not confirm that a bomb hit the vehicle. Egyptian security officials at the scene said the explosion occurred at about 8 a.m. as the MFO personnel were driving away from the airport at el-Goura where they are based, 15 kilometres from the Gaza border. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to talk. Canada has about 30 troops in the MFO. The spokesman for the Canadian Embassy in Cairo, Ulrich Shannon, said he could not confirm any casualties. Gov. Abdel Hamid said the explosion was meant more as a warning than to cause damage. "This is a firecracker," he told The Associated Press, but he did not elaborate. |
| Posted by: Steve 2005-08-15 12:25 |
| #2 Two Canadians were wounded. |
| Posted by: ed 2005-08-15 09:28 |
| #1 lol! caused by an unexploded landmine left over from conflicts with Israel They never give up. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-08-15 08:43 |