Norway’s foreign ministry confirmed on Friday that a Norwegian woman was one of two tourists kidnapped in the southern portion of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. The kidnapping is the latest of several such incidents carried out by armed bandits in the area.
The foreign ministry hasn’t issued a warning against travel to Egypt, following all the political unrest in the country, but has urged tourists to be cautious. They wouldn’t release details about the kidnapped Norwegian but told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) that she is a woman in her 30s.
The other kidnap victim was identified as an Israeli citizen of Arab background. Egyptian police told news bureau AFT that the two were seized while traveling on the highway between two tourist destinations at Taba and Dahab in the southern Sinai.
Six armed man reportedly stopped their car and ordered them into a truck. Their Egyptian driver was released. A foreign ministry spokesman said Norwegian negotiators were working with their counterparts in other countries involved, in an effort to get the two released. The kidnappers of tourists, like those who snatched two British tourists earlier this month, often demand money or the release of prisoners in Egypt.
newsinenglish.no staff
