Tiger Shark Attacks in Egypt: A Growing Concern in the Red Sea

Nov 07, 2025 0

The Red Sea is a major tourist destination, popular with divers due to its vibrant marine life. However, recent incidents involving shark attacks have raised concerns about safety in the region. This article examines the history of shark attacks in the Egyptian Red Sea, recent incidents, and measures being taken to ensure tourist safety.

Tiger Shark

Historical Context of Shark Attacks in the Red Sea

While sharks inhabit the Red Sea, encounters with them are relatively rare. However, there have been several notable incidents over the years:

2010 Sharm El Sheikh Shark Attacks: A series of attacks by sharks on swimmers off the Red Sea resort of Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. On 1 December 2010, three Russians and one Ukrainian were seriously injured within minutes of each other. On 5 December 2010, a German woman was killed while wading and snorkeling in the shallows close to the shoreline.
2018: A Czech tourist was killed by a shark off a Red Sea beach.
2020: A young Ukrainian boy lost an arm, and an Egyptian tour guide lost a leg in a shark attack in the same region.
2022: Two women, one Austrian and the other Romanian, were killed in shark attacks within one week off the coast of Egypt's Red Sea.

Recent Shark Attack Incidents

In recent years, there have been several notable shark attacks in the Egyptian Red Sea, raising concerns about tourist safety.

June 2023: Hurghada

In June 2023, a tiger shark killed a Russian national in Hurghada, another coastal city on the Red Sea north of Marsa Alam. The victim was a 24-year-old Russian snorkeller. Following the attack, authorities closed off a 46-mile (74km) stretch of the coastline and later announced that the shark had been caught and was being examined to determine the reasons for the rare attack.

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Recent Incident in Marsa Alam

Most recently, a shark attack off Egypt's Red Sea coast resulted in the death of one tourist and injury to another, according to authorities on Sunday. The incident occurred in the northern Marsa Alam area, with an Italy foreign ministry source identifying both victims as Italian nationals. "Two foreigners were attacked by a shark in the northern Marsa Alam area, which led to the injury of one and the death of the other," Egypt's environment ministry said in a statement. A source at the Italian foreign ministry told AFP the man killed was a 48-year-old resident of Rome. One tourist was killed and another was injured in a shark attack in Egypt's Marsa Alam resort, the environment ministry said in a statement on Sunday without giving the nationalities of those involved.

Map of Egypt

Response to the Attacks

In response to these incidents, Egyptian authorities have taken several measures:

Beach Closures: Beaches in the affected areas have been closed temporarily to ensure public safety. The ministry said the attack occurred in deep water outside the designated swimming zone near the jetties in northern Marsa Alam, adding that swimming out from the jetties was prohibited and the jetties would be closed for two days from Monday.
Shark Capture and Examination: In some instances, sharks believed to be responsible for the attacks have been captured and examined to understand the reasons behind their behavior.
New Regulations: Following the 2010 Sharm El Sheikh attacks, the local government issued new rules, including banning shark-feeding and restricting swimming.

Theories Behind the Attacks

Various theories have been proposed to explain the increase in shark attacks:

Overfishing: Some experts suggest that overfishing in the Red Sea may lead to increased hunger and aggression in sharks.
Feeding Practices: Illegal or inadvertent feeding of fish close to shore can attract sharks due to the scents produced.
Cattle Ships: One hypothesis for the 2010 attacks included the dumping of sheep carcasses into the Red Sea from cattle ships transporting sheep for slaughter during the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha.

Safety Measures and Recommendations

To mitigate the risk of shark attacks, several measures and recommendations have been suggested:

Marine Waste Management: Develop a plan to manage marine waste effectively.
Fishing Regulation: Regulate fishing activities to maintain the ecological balance.
Pollution Control: Combat marine pollution to avoid altering shark behavior.
Zoning: Separate the Red Sea fishing area from the Gulf of Suez and ban fishing boats in specific areas.
Adherence to Guidelines: Tourists should be vigilant when in the water and strictly adhere to any swimming bans imposed by local authorities.

The attacks also sparked conspiracy theories about possible Israeli involvement. Egyptian television broadcast claims from South Sinai governor Mohamed Abdul Fadil Shousha that Israeli divers captured a shark with a GPS unit planted on its back, allegedly by Mossad.

Oceanic Whitetip Shark

The chairman of the Shark Trust, a British charity dedicated to shark conservation, commented: "It is probable that the tragic attacks were triggered by a specific activity or event..." The chairman of the Sharm El Sheikh Chamber of Diving and Water Sports (CDWS) suggested that attacks might have been due to overfishing, which is an ongoing problem in the area.

Impact on Tourism

Shark attacks can have a significant impact on the local tourist industry. Following the 2010 attacks in Sharm El Sheikh, beaches were deserted, and people were scared to visit the beach. The Egyptian authorities reopened the beaches on 4 December following the capture of the sharks. In response, officials closed the beaches and suspended all diving and watersports activities.

Shark Attack Statistics

Sharks are commonly seen near Sharm El Sheikh, but attacks on humans are very rare, particularly by the two species implicated in the 2010 attacks. Only nine attacks by oceanic whitetips had been reported worldwide in the last 430 years, and only one had been previously fatal. However, oceanographic researcher Jacques Cousteau described the oceanic whitetip as "the most dangerous of all sharks".

Read also: Tragic Egypt Shark Attack

Despite the greater notoriety of other sharks habitually found nearer the shore, the oceanic whitetip is believed to be responsible for many casualties as a result of predation on survivors of shipwrecks. Such incidents are not included in common shark-attack indices for the 20th and 21st centuries, and as a result of this, the oceanic whitetip does not have the highest number of recorded incidents; only 5 recorded attacks as of 2009.

Conclusion

While shark attacks in the Red Sea are relatively rare, recent incidents have highlighted the need for increased vigilance and safety measures. By understanding the factors that may contribute to these attacks and implementing appropriate strategies, authorities can work to protect tourists and preserve the region's vital tourism industry.