Egypt to spend $32M upgrading tourist resort security

CAIRO (AP) — The Egyptian government will spend $32 million to upgrade security in two Red Sea resorts popular with foreign tourists in the wake of recent attacks on hotels and the suspected terror bombing of a Russian airliner, the tourism minister said Thursday.

The move is designed to restore confidence in the safety of the country's tourist attractions. According to the minister, Hisham Zaazou, the plan is to expand the use of security cameras, scanning and detection equipment and sniffer dogs in the towns of Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada.

Additional security personnel will also be deployed there, he said.

"The security of visitors to Egypt remains our highest priority," Zaazou said in a statement. "I believe that these new measures will further add to the security of our resorts while not being intrusive to tourists so they can get on with enjoying their holidays."

The government's decision comes after two attacks earlier this month that targeted hotels frequented by foreign tourists in Cairo and Hurghada. No one was hurt in the Cairo attack, but three tourists – two Austrians and a Swede – were stabbed in Hurghada.