In 1992, a spate of
terrorist attacks on tourists in Middle Egypt made headline news abroad. Tourist buses were ambushed outside Qena, Assyut and Dairut, and a Nile cruiser was machine-gunned near El-Qusiya. Each year since, there have been a few attacks on passing trains, and on buses or taxis around Qena, with sporadic outbursts in Cairo. The situation peaked in November 1997, when over sixty people, mostly foreign tourists, were killed at Hatshepsut Temple on Luxor's west bank. Tourism dried up completely and the government introduced severe security measures. By late 1999, the situation had stabilized, but police remain vigilant and still assign escorts to any foreigners they see. Independent travellers continued to visit Minya and Sohag - until their embassies issued
warnings about them too. Perversely, the Ministry of Tourism continues to assert that the region is safe, but has privately told travel agencies to drop it, while the police have their own policy.
The reality is a wider conflict between Islamic militants (called "Islamists" or "terrorists" in the media) and the security forces, in which arrests and shoot-outs occurred weekly but seldom made headlines. The police claim to have narrowed the Islamists' field of operations down to the Minya-Mallawi area, having "neutralized" them in other towns or forced them to hide out in the desert. Cane fields alongside the train tracks have been burned to deny cover to snipers; traffic is filtered through checkpoints on trunk routes and roads out of town; and some places are under dusk-to-dawn curfew. Torture is routine during police interrogations and in two special prisons in the mountains outside Qena; rumour has it that policemen are rewarded for each "terrorist" shot dead.
Ask Egyptians about this, and their reply often depends on whether they're Muslim or Christian. Muslims usually downplay the problem, insisting that there is no sectarian angle, only terrorists backed by Iran or Sudan. Christians (in private) tell a different story, of extortion and assaults, petty restrictions on churches, and the fear that local officials are unsympathetic to their plight. In recent times there have been disturbing accounts of police brutality against Copts, including rapes, beatings and even simulated crucifixions. Whilst the lurid details may be exaggerated, the basic scenario is not unlikely.
Officially, foreigners are free to visit any part of Middle Egypt; police on the spot interpret this as meaning that a brief visit is permissable, but staying is not. If you're bent on reaching a site and no transport is available, they'll even drive you there under armed escort. The aim is to get you out of the area (and preferably back in Luxor) well before nightfall. In many towns, hotels have been told not to take foreign guests, so that if one has to stay, it must be somewhere that supposedly affords protection. One is also shadowed by plainclothes or uniformed cops, which precludes much contact with other people. This applies along the whole of the Nile Valley between Cairo and Qena. When asked about trouble, local cops invariably dismiss the notion - whatever the situation is.
Bearing all this in mind, you must choose whether to skip Middle Egypt entirely; chance a trip from Luxor to the temples of Dendara (near Qena) or Abydos; or venture further. Should you decide to risk travelling on , service taxis may be an option, although foreigners may not be allowed to travel in them in some areas. Most of the time, things seem pretty normal by Egyptian standards, though the police presence is larger. Their hardware reflects the level of tension: one ammunition clip in their rifles means things are relatively relaxed; two taped together indicates concern; while flak-jackets and machine-gun nests signify a heavy situation.
