CAIRO: Three Arab states have promised to donate two ferries each to Egypt, nearly two months after an Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea leaving some 1,000 people dead, the Egyptian press reported Monday. President Hosni Mubarak publicized the offers from the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Libya and Qatar in an exclusive interview with Khalid Imam, editor of the semi-official Al-Messa daily. The interview ran Sunday in Al-Messa but was picked up Monday by other Egyptian dailies. The six $70 million ferries will operate in the Red Sea and be used primarily to transport Muslim pilgrims and Egyptian expatriates in the Gulf, Mubarak told Imam. Each of the ships, to be imported from Australia, has a capacity of around 1,500 passengers, he added. Mubarak said that the ferries will be modern and faster compared to those currently servicing passengers in the Red Sea. The three leaders have directed that contracts (with delivery companies) be signed immediately and the ferries delivered to Egypt as quickly as possible, Mubarak told the newspaper. He added that they will be managed by a specialized company that will ensure that the ships conform to high safety standards. The Al-Salam Boccacio 98, a 36-year-old ship, which sank in February, was modified to increase passenger capacity a few years ago and was deemed unfit to continue to serve on its original European routes. It was sailing from the Saudi port of Duba and carried mostly Egyptian itinerant workers, some of whom were bringing months if not years worth of savings back home. Doubts about safety procedures onboard the ship have been raised. The Egyptian government, which was also criticized over its management of the crisis, has set up an investigation panel to probe the accident. Last week, parliament lifted the immunity of the MP owner of the Al-Salam 98 so that he could be questioned by the panel over the accident, which according to survivors, was caused by a fire on board the ship. Mamdouh Ismail, who is currently in Britain, previously told the public prosecutor that he had no responsibility in the case. AFP
Arab leaders donate six ferries to Egypt after sea disaster
