Group of foreign tourists kidnapped in southern Egypt.

Egyptian security officials have confirmed that a group of foreign tourists have been kidnapped in southern Egypt. The group was on a trip near Aswan, located approximately 425 mi/680 km south of Cairo near the Egypt-Sudan border area, when an unidentified group of armed men abducted them sometime over the 19-21 September 2008 weekend; the group reportedly consisted of five Italians, five Germans, one Romanian and several Egyptian nationals. Early reports indicated that two Israelis may have been among those abducted, but Israeli officials have denied this. Details regarding the kidnappings remain sketchy, and the development comes amid recent warnings by Israeli authorities that militants were seeking to abduct Israelis in Egypt (and other locations abroad). At this point, there is no indication that this incident is related to those warnings, as authorities have stated that the group (possibly a criminal gang) is demanding a ransom of US$15 million in exchange for the tourists' release. It is possible that the kidnapping was criminally motivated, and there is some speculation that the hostages have been transported to Sudan and are being held there. Attacks targeting foreign tourists have occurred in Egypt, but no major incidents have occurred recently and kidnappings targeting foreigners in the country are not common.