CAIRO (Sputnik) – Mexican sightseers, accidentally killed by Egyptian security forces overnight, fell victim to an unfortunate set of circumstances due to the similarity of their vehicles to those known to be used by militants, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman announced Monday.
The Egyptian Interior Ministry said earlier that 12 people, including Mexican tourists and their accompanying Egyptian tour guides, had been fatally shot by security forces during an anti-terror raid in the Wahat vicinity of the Western Desert.
"Mexican tourists were in a prohibited area of operations. Their presence coincided with an army and police force manhunt for terrorist elements, whose SUVs were similar to those used by the tourists," spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid relayed Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry’s words on the ministry’s website.
Egypt’s Tourism Ministry spokeswoman Rasha Azayzi said the four-vehicle convoy containing the tourists did not have licenses and the company escorting them had not received sightseeing permits.
The Tourism Ministry launched an investigation into the incident.
The Western Desert is a popular tourist attraction in Egypt, but is also known as a hideout for militant groups.
