3 held in Suez Canal attack on box ship EGYPT said three people have been arrested in a failed rocket-propelled grenade attack on a box ship as it passed through the Suez Canal, IHS Global Insight’s Country Risk & Forecasting unit said today. Two explosions were reportedly heard near Qantara, which is about halfway between Port Said and Ismailiya on the canal, during the attempt against the 10,062teu, Panamian-flagged Cosco Asia on 31 August, IHS CR&F added. In China, the Xinhua News Agency reported that the ship also came under machine gun fire, but the attack failed to damage the ship or its cargo, Suez Canal Authority chief Mohab Mamish said in a statement yesterday, according to Bloomberg. No injuries were reported. The Chinese Embassy in Egypt confirmed that Cosco Asia left the canal for the Mediterranean on the afternoon of 31 August, the news agency added. “This plot is credible, in light of availability of smuggled RPG-7s with a range of approximately 200ms in the nearby Sinai peninsula, and increased terrorist incidents in Canal cities since the Army ousted former President Morsi on 3 July,” IHS CR&F commented. “The army has announced increased canal security, but it is unlikely that its whole 192km length can be entirely secured against would-be attackers, either firing RPGs from the bank or, less likely, launching a boat-borne [improvised explosive device] attack,” it added. Also, IHS CR&F said, “Is unlikely that either tactic could succeed in [sinking] a ship and blocking the Suez Canal for more than a few hours, especially given the inaccuracy of RPGs and the likely small impact of any hit. “However, the psychological impact of any attack on international confidence in the canal’s security would be significant.”
Posted on: Wed, 04 Sep 2013 11:14:12 +0000
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