Egyptian security forces are hunting for over a dozen individuals who opened fire with fireworks and rubber bullets at Israeli Arab tourists at a hotel close to the Giza pyramids, causing some damage to the hotel’s facade and a nearby tourist bus, Times of Israel reports.
No one was hurt in the attack, an Egyptian security official said.
The tourists, who numbered roughly 45, were reportedly Israeli Arabs. MK Ahmad Tibi told Israel Radio they were a group from the northern town of Umm al-Fahm, Jaffa and other Arab population centers.
Tibi and others have suggested the attack may have deliberately targeted the group because they were Israelis. Egyptian media identified them as “1948 Arabs,” a euphemism for Arabs who hold Israeli citizenship, Times of Israel reports.
According to initial reports, the shooters were part of a mob of 15 individuals that gathered outside the Three Pyramids Hotel. They were identified by Egyptian media as linked to the Muslim Brotherhood group. They shot fireworks at the hotel. The shooters aimed at the tourists as they walked from the entrance of the hotel to a parked bus nearby.
A deputy mayor from Umm al-Fahm said Thursday afternoon that all the tourists were returned to the hotel, and have been staying indoors since the attack, Times of Israel reports.
Two masked motorcyclists among the mob fired rubber bullets, according to Egyptian authorities. One of the motorcyclists has been caught. Another attacker is caught, but it isn’t clear if he is the other motorcyclist. Security forces have launched a manhunt for the rest of the members of the mob.
{Matzav.com Israel}
