Cruise ship in Suez Canal collision
An Egyptian passenger cruiser carrying more than 1,300 Muslim pilgrims from Egypt collided late today with a Cypriot cargo ship at the southern entrance of the Suez Canal, port officials and state-run media said.
At least 22 Egyptians aboard the Salam 95 cruiser were injured and helped aboard at least 12 rescue boats that rushed to the crash site and took the victims to hospital, the officials said.
The Egyptian ship was returning from the Saudi Arabian Red Sea port of Jiddah with about 1,350 passengers, most of whom were Egyptian, said Egypt’s semiofficial Middle East News Agency. At least five Palestinians were also on board.
MENA said a Cypriot cargo ship entering the Red Sea after crossing the Suez Canal from the Mediterranean rammed into the Egyptian vessel, gouging a five metre (16 foot) diameter hole in its side into which sea water flooded into its engine room.
The collision happened near Port Tawfiq, about 80 miles (130 kilometres) east of the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
The passengers were returning to Egypt after performing a pilgrimage to Islam’s holiest sites in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
