CAIRO, 20 August 2005 — Egyptian security forces have arrested a man suspected of having helped mastermind last month’s deadly bombings in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, a security source told reporters yesterday. He named the man as Hassan Al-Arayshi, 25, saying he was nabbed late Thursday night in a mountainous area near the town of Al-Arish in the northern Sinai Peninsula.
He said Al-Arayshi had stolen the identification papers of a man not involved in the attacks, thus temporarily covering his tracks. Three other key suspects were arrested last week, Interior Minister Habib Al-Adly said Sunday. The minister said investigators believed that Mohammed Ahmed Saleh Felifel, Osama Abdelghani Al-Nikhlawi and Khaled Mussaed were also involved in the deadly bombing of three other Sinai resorts last October that targeted Israeli tourists.
All three bombers died in the explosions that destroyed Sharm El-Sheikh’s Ghazala Hotel and struck a nearby car park and a busy market area. Authorities believe the suspects helped three suicide bombers plan and prepare for the July 23 triple attacks that left some 70 people dead, including more than a dozen foreigners.
