The blasts raised more questions than answers. (Reuters)

By Mohammad Gamal Arafa, IOL Staff

CAIRO, July 24, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – Though some experts and security pundits have pointed the finger for recent terrorist attacks that hit Egypt at a "third generation" of Islamist groups subscribing to Al-Qaeda ideology, the July 23 bombings in Sharm El-Sheikh opened the door for a new array of analyses and readings into the reasons and the message behind one of the worst attacks in Egyptian history.

The multiple bombings, which ripped through a seafront hotel, a car park and a busy market area in the Red Sea diving resort and killed at least 64 people, were timed to coincide with Egypt's celebration of the 53^{rd anniversary of the July Revolution against a corrupt monarchy.}

^{It seems as if the attackers tended to strike in national festivities playing on potential security lax or even to cast a heavy cloud on the joyful atmosphere.}

^{The October 6 bombings which hit tourist attractions in Taba and Nuweiba, when the Egyptians were celebrate the liberation of Sinai from Israeli occupation forces, are a case in point.}

^{Saturday’s bombings also coincided with the trial of three Taba suspects, including one at large, in the city of Ismailiya, some 120 km from Cairo.}

^{Egyptian Interior Minister Habib El-Adly said immediately after the attacks that they have "leads" suggesting that the Sharm El-Sheikh attacks were linked to the Taba bombings.}

^{International human rights watchdogs have criticized Egyptian authorities for randomly arresting thousands of Sinai Bedouins in the aftermath of the Taba bombings, an iron fist policy that outraged the detainees' families.}

“Third Generation”

Most of the victims were Egyptians. (Reuters)

^{The Sharm blasts also showed that the attackers sought to triggering panic and bring in blood and destruction even at the cost of innocent lives.}

^{Some believe that they might be the work of untrained young Egyptians, who are influenced by Al-Qaeda ideology but are not operating under its auspices.}

^{Two unknown groups, the Mujahdeen Egypt and Sinai Martyrs Brigades, have claimed the multiple bombings but distanced themselves from Osama Bin Laden’s network.}

^{The Taba blasts and recent attacks against tourists in Cairo sent the message that the perpetrators were targeting the crucial tourism sector, heralding a "third generation" of violent groups like the ones terrorizing the country in 1980s and early 1990s.}

^{Analysts believe that this third generation is made up of young people who only heard about violent groups like the Jihad and Jama'a Islamia (Islamic Group).}

^{They are driven by a sheer hatred toward the "anti-Islam" West and are firmly of the view that their Arab regimes are, willingly or unwillingly, toeing the western line.}

^{The most likely scenario is that this new generation of terrorists is not linked to these groups or their leaders.}

^{The sure thing is that they subscribe to the same Al-Qaeda ideology, which mainly champions armed attacks on US and Israeli interests.}

^{Besides security officials have discredited Al-Qaeda claims of the attacks as they are convinced now that all these groups are only wedded into the same ideology and do not operating under an umbrella organization.}

Unprecedented

Thousands of tourists have flown out of Sharm El-Sheikh following the attacks. (Reuters)

^{The massive destruction caused in Sharm El-Sheikh revealed that the bombers wanted to exact a heavy toll on the city and send shockwaves across the country’s political landscape.}

^{The bombings have also targeted this time a place where President Mubarak spends much of his time and has become a second seat of power.}

^{The picturesque city has also become a favorite venue for international conferences and events.}

^{The recent spate of attacks are also ringing alarm bells, as the suicide bombings are unprecedented in the country.}

^{On April 7, a man killed himself and three tourists when the bomb he was carrying exploded among a group of tourists in the historical Al-Azhar district downtown Cairo.}

^{Days later, a suicide bomber struck on April 30 at foreign tourists near Egypt's most famous museum.}

^{The attacks further suggest that the culture of violence and explosions is gaining ground, a phenomenon fed up by the growing frustration, desperation and towering unemployment rates among Egyptian and Arab youths.}

^{The Mossad link is also one of the possible scenarios in any terrorists strike – even in London.}

^{The Sharm blasts, according to analysts and politicians, gave weight to this possibility with the aim of dealing a fatal blow to Egypt’s tourism bonanza and economy.}

^{"It is as clear as day that Mossad is behind the Sharm blasts to terrify innocent people, wage war on the Arabs and spark confusion and sedition," Hussein Rashid, the deputy chairman of the Egyptian Misr Al-Fatat party, said on the party’s Web site.}

^{"The Mossad knows that Sharm El-Sheikh is the jewel of Egypt's tourism industry and has been known for its tranquil and peaceful atmosphere, and they managed to kill two birds with one stone. Egyptians could not have committed such a heinous crime," he added.}

^{Pundits further believe that the bombings might have also been designed by Mossad to press Cairo into "silently" nodding in agreement at the planned Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and stop talking about it as a part of the internationally-backed roadmap or about a comprehensive settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.}

^{Israeli Premier Ariel Sharon confirmed on Friday, July 22, that Israel and Egypt will conclude a deal allowing the deployment of 750 Egyptian border policemen along the southern edge of the Gaza Strip, an area adjacent to Rafah known as the Philadelphi Route, according to Israeli Haaretz newspaper.}

^{The daily said that the remaining differences between revolve around Israel's demand to take responsibility for the prevention of cross-border smuggling between Egypt and the Palestinian Authority.}

^{Analysts have additionally smelled a rat given that most of the 64 victims were Egyptians, while some 10,000 Israeli tourists are holidaying in the Sinai peninsula.}

^{Westerners usually avoid Sharm El-Sheikh in summertime when temperature rise to a searing 40 Celsius.}

^{Moreover, the hit areas are usually frequented by Egyptians, particularly the old market place and the car park.}

^{Undeniably, the vital Egyptian tourism, the country's main foreign currency earner ($6.6 billion annually) and biggest private sector employer, will take the brunt of the attacks.}

^{Thousands of shell-shocked tourists have already flown out of Sharm El-Sheikh.}

^{Though Tourism Minister Ahmed El-Maghrabi predicted a "short-term" impact, analysts predict the worst-case scenario as the terrorists struck the country’s flagship resort.}

^{The heavy death toll, which was revised down from 88 by the Health Ministry Sunday, the destruction wrecked on the resort and not to mention the reoccurrence of blasts and attacks against tourists over the past nine months are all indicative of grave consequences on the onetime booming tourism sector in the days to come.}

^{The opposition powers are also expected to lambaste the government for failing so far to redress loopholes in the 1978 Camp David peace agreement with Israel, which obliged Egypt to keep only lightly-armed policemen in the Sinai peninsula.}

^{The opposition will also press ahead with its calls to abolish the notorious emergency law, in force since 1981, as it failed to thwart terrorist operations and is only being used as a ruse to crack down on personal freedoms and free speech.}

^{The attacks will further throw a spanner in the reform process and buoy calls by the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) to nominate Mubarak for a new term in office to "enhance stability".}

^{Mubarak, 77, is widely expected to seek a fifth term though he is yet to publically announce he is standing.}

^{The newly created electoral commission said Sunday that the country’s first multi-candidate presidential elections will take place on September 7.}

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