Nothing is spared Egypt

- A revolution, political violence and terrorist attacks in tourism, one of the main sources of income, driven into a nosedive.

EgyptAir launched just a few days ago a major campaign to promote tourism in the country, with discounts on tickets up to 50 percent. Now is a unit of the loss-making company paid most likely in the Mediterranean.

The cause of the disaster is still unknown. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said that 'nothing can be ruled out.' The plane had 66 people on board, including three security guards. The latter is not a luxury: Egypt is in the grip of terror attacks by Islamic State. Last week was a bit shot outside Cairo eight agents.
  
    
     
      
        6:04
      
     Mattie breaks with twins
     
     
      
        0:31
      
     Spectacular meteor filmed
     
     
      
        1:17
      
     Douwe, where's your girlfriend?
     
    
   
  

Hundreds of jihadists in particular ensure chaos is the lawless Sinai desert, where the military but can barely make a fist. Given the large distance it is unlikely that they are responsible for any shooting down of flight MS804. Well they did last year to smuggle a bomb aboard a plane full of Russian holidaymakers.

That device exploded over the Sinai. All 224 passengers on board were killed. Egypt recognized until months later that it was a terrorist attack. When most Western airlines had suspended all flights to beach resorts like Sharm el-Sheik.

Publicity campaigns thwarted
  
  
   advertisement
   
   
  
   
    
    
   
   
    
    
   
   
    
     
     
    
   
 

The tourism industry has since collapsed. Egypt counted the first quarter of this year, 66 percent less tourism revenue than in the year-ago period. The number of holidaymakers decreased from 2.2 million to 1.2 million. In 2010, shortly before the Revolution, visited nearly 15 million tourists visiting the country. Authorities hope next year to sit on 12 million. The slick publicity campaigns are thwarted by the realities.

An embarrassment for the authorities was the army last year eight Mexican tourists killed by helicopters. The tourist group was on its way to an oasis in the western desert, but the authorities thought it was Islamic terrorists. Cairo claimed they had driven within limits.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Egyptian tourism agencies has compensated the families of three of the victims. They get paid every 140. 000 dollars. The remaining families are still under negotiation.

Besides Mexico Egypt in the coming period also can count on little holidaymakers from Italy after the mysterious martyrdom of an Italian student. All indications point to the involvement of the dreaded security forces, though it denied by the authorities.

And earlier this year clinched a confused an Egyptian unit of EgyptAir and forced the pilot to land in Cyprus. As the man wanted to visit his ex-wife and children. No one was injured in the incident.