CAIRO: An Egyptian ferry carrying about 1,000 passengers, mainly Muslim pilgrims, was rescued in the Red Sea after running into difficulty, the official MENA news agency reported Monday. The Cleopatra I sent distress signals when one of its engines broke down as it was heading to the Egyptian port of Suez. It was towed back to the Saudi port of Jeddah from which it departed, the agency said, without specifying exactly when the incident occurred. Six months ago, about 1,000 people, mainly Egyptian pilgrims and migrant workers, died when the Al-Salam Boccaccio 98, an Egyptian ferry, sank in the Red Sea, in one of the worst maritime tragedies in recent history. Close to 500 people perished when another Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea in 1991. Egypt s transport sector has been under attack recently, following a string of deadly road crashes and the death of more than 50 Egyptians in a train crash north of Cairo last week. AFP
Egyptian ferry rescued in Red Sea
