They said the ships sent to Libyan and Tunisian shores included the Cairo and the Riyadh, which were given to Egypt as a gift from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah following the sinking of the Egyptian ship Al-Salam in 1998. The two ships were plying between the seaports of Dhiba, Safaja and Hergada.

The sources said Egyptian Minister of Transport Atif Abdul Hameed gave orders to all ships transporting pilgrims to proceed to Libyan and Tunisian seaports to help evacuate Egyptians and other people fleeing from Libya.

Emad Abdul Aziz, a director of a maritime transport company in the Kingdom, said the two ships were chosen for the mission due to their speed and capacity.

Muhammad Abdul Hakam, head of Egyptian consular affairs, said four Egyptian boats were now on their way to Tunisia. More than 75,000 Egyptians have set up camp along the Libyan-Tunisian border.

Ahmad Al-Ouaifi, director of Al-Zarqa Travel and Tourist Agency, said the diversion of the ships would adversely affect sea transport between the two countries, especially the Umrah traffic.

He said travel agencies would be affected financially and added that the shipping line between the Kingdom and Egypt requires at least 20 ships to be present in the Red Sea.