Egypt beefs up shark safety at resort beaches

Egypthas institutednew safety measuresat the Sharm el-Sheikh resort's beaches, which are reopening following a series of deadly shark attacks.

Federal authoritieshave allowed the beaches at the Red Sea resort to reopen after the attacks earlier this month "on condition hotel owners adhere to new controls to ensure the safety of foreign tourists while diving or swimming," South Sinai Governor Mohamed Abdel Fadil Shousha said, according to a BBC report Monday.

A German woman was killed and four other tourists were injured in the attacks earlier this month.

Shousha said authorities hope to secure the beaches by:

• Setting up watch stations to allow divers to monitor the coast.
• Having speedboats patrol the waters continuously.
• Keepingswimmers within designated areas.
• Prohibiting swimmers from feeding sharks.

On Thursday, Shousha announced the opening of a kilometre-long section of beach on the opposite end of the resort at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula from where the shark attacks occurred.

The attacks were believed to be carried out by a Mako and an oceanic white tip shark, prompting an indefinite closure of the waters.

One Mako shark was caught, but the other remains at large.

Teams of local and international experts are trying to determine the reason for the sharks' behaviour.