Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak formally stepped down on Friday, but before his second-in-command Omar Suleiman announced his resignation, he had already left Egypt’s capital Cairo for Sharm el-Sheikh.
While the sudden resignation, despite Mubarak’s affirmations a day earlier that he would stay in power until September, was surprising to most, Mubarak’s decision to travel to the resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh was not.
Even though he resided in Cairo’s presidential palace as part of his job, Mubarak has made Sharm el-Sheikh his second home, living there on and off and owning properties at the Red Sea resort for the last decade or so, according to USA Today citing an Egypt tourism director.
With a population of only about 35,000, Sharm el-Sheikh is on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula and boasts some well-known hotels, like the Ritz-Carlton and the Four Seasons.
Despite its long-standing reputation as a reliable and attractive vacation spot for Europeans, recent violence has marred the resort city.
In December of last year, several shark attacks on Sharm el-Sheikh’s beaches killed a German tourist and severely injured several more, causing panic and closing the shoreline. The beaches opened days later with new security measures.
In 2005, a string of terrorist attacks in Sharm el-Sheikh on an anniversary of Egypt’s Revolution Day killed 88 people and injured 200 more. According to the BBC, most of the victims were Egyptians, and only a handful were tourists. The terrorist bombings, the deadliest terrorist attack in Egypt’s history, were blamed on Bedouin militants.
Unlike the larger cities of Cairo, Alexandria, and Giza, the town of Sharm el-Sheikh was relatively quiet over the days of protests that have toppled Mubarak, according to UK’s The Telegraph.
But with the news that Mubarak is heading toward the resort city, Sharm el-Sheikh may become a new target of angry protesters or disgruntled Egyptians.
While the sudden resignation, despite Mubarak’s affirmations a day earlier that he would stay in power until September, was surprising to most, Mubarak’s decision to travel to the resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh was not.
Even though he resided in Cairo’s presidential palace as part of his job, Mubarak has made Sharm el-Sheikh his second home, living there on and off and owning properties at the Red Sea resort for the last decade or so, according to USA Today citing an Egypt tourism director.
With a population of only about 35,000, Sharm el-Sheikh is on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula and boasts some well-known hotels, like the Ritz-Carlton and the Four Seasons.
Despite its long-standing reputation as a reliable and attractive vacation spot for Europeans, recent violence has marred the resort city.
In December of last year, several shark attacks on Sharm el-Sheikh’s beaches killed a German tourist and severely injured several more, causing panic and closing the shoreline. The beaches opened days later with new security measures.
In 2005, a string of terrorist attacks in Sharm el-Sheikh on an anniversary of Egypt’s Revolution Day killed 88 people and injured 200 more. According to the BBC, most of the victims were Egyptians, and only a handful were tourists. The terrorist bombings, the deadliest terrorist attack in Egypt’s history, were blamed on Bedouin militants.
Unlike the larger cities of Cairo, Alexandria, and Giza, the town of Sharm el-Sheikh was relatively quiet over the days of protests that have toppled Mubarak, according to UK’s The Telegraph.
But with the news that Mubarak is heading toward the resort city, Sharm el-Sheikh may become a new target of angry protesters or disgruntled Egyptians.
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