Homeland Security

DATE=10/25/04

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=EGYPT/ARRESTS (LO)

NUMBER=2-319884

BYLINE=URSULA LINDSEY

DATELINE=CAIRO

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

HEADLINE: Egypt Arrests Suspects in Taba Bombings, Says Palestinian Mastermind Died in Attack

INTRO: Egyptian authorities have arrested five men they say carried out the bombings that killed at least 34 people earlier this month at seaside resorts on the Sinai Peninsula. The authorities say the leader of the group was a Palestinian who died in one of the explosions. They say he targeted Israeli tourists, and was motivated by anger over the situation in the Occupied Territories. Ursula Lindsey reports from Cairo.

TEXT: The Egyptian Ministry of Interior says the bombings were masterminded by Palestinian Iyad Said Saleh, and were a reaction to what the ministry calls "the deteriorating situation in the Occupied Territories."

Mr. Saleh was a driver living in the northern Sinai town of Al Arish. The police say he died by accident in the bombing of the Hilton Hotel in Taba, on the Israeli border. They say the bomb apparently exploded earlier than planned, before Saleh and his alleged accomplice, Egyptian Bedouin Soliman Ahmed Saleh Falaifel could get out.

The Interior Ministry says Falaifel's brother (Mohamed Ahmed Saleh Falaifel) and another man (Hammad Gaman Gomah Tarabin) carried out the attacks at two campsites in Sinai. The statement from the Interior Ministry did not specify their whereabouts.

Police say the five men arrested for helping the attackers are all Egyptians. They are accused of providing information about the targets, and helping to steal and prepare the vehicles used in the attacks.

Egyptian authorities say the attackers stole three cars and equipped them with explosives. Officials say the bombs were made out of ammunition left over in Sinai from the Egyptian-Israeli wars, and from timers taken from washing machines.

The Egyptian government says the investigation continues and more arrests are expected. (SIGNED)

NEB/UL/AWP/RAE