Mexico's Government Demands Investigation After Egyptian Military Kills 2 Mexican Tourists
Mexico's government as requested a probe into an incident on Sunday in which Egyptian forces reportedly accidentally attacked a Meixcan tourist group after mistakening them for militants.
The incident happened when Egyptian forces attacked a tourist group of twelve in the remote Al Wahat area, injuring six Mexican tourists and killing two.
The tour group had reportedly stopped its vehicles to prepare lunch, but Egyptian military helicopters mistakened the camp site for an Islamic militant dwelling.
"The Mexican government asks the Egyptian authorities to give this matter the highest priority and urgency," Foreign Secretary Claudia Ruiz Massieu said at a news conference in Mexico City on Monday.
The accidental attack has resulted in questions regarding Egypt's control of the militant situation in its country.
"What we saw was not just the lack of training of the military forces but also their desperation," Mokhtar Awad, a researcher at the Center for American Progress, told the New York Times in a statement.
"It tells you how chaotic the situation is," he said, "if they feel so desperate to put an end to this that they end up taking out what we gather is the first thing they see."
Ibrahim Mehleb, Egypt's acting prime minister, said in a statement that Egypt offers its condolences to Mexico.
"We are standing next to the Mexican people in their tragedy. The circumstances surrounding the incident are part of Egypt's fight against terrorism. The Mexican side is receiving the best care and we will take care of the Egyptian victims," Mehleb said in a statement.
