CAIRO: Egyptian police have halted their search for three missing Russian divers in the Red Sea, an official said Monday, but a private diving rescue service said it will continue the search for another day.The divers went missing in the Red Sea waters last Wednesday while diving at the Elphinstone Reef, southeast of the resort of Marsa Alam.A police official said that the government halted its rescue operation because it determined the divers did not survive, and underwater currents would make it impossible to find their bodies. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.However, Alaa El Din Abdel Geleel, the head of the Red Sea Association for Diving and Water Activities, said his agency would continue its efforts to find the missing divers until late Tuesday."We have to continue our search for six total days, Abdel Geleel said. "We still have eight boats looking in the deep sea. Abdel Geleel said on Friday that there was only a slim chance of finding the three Russians, citing bad weather, strong winds and high waves.The three were planning to dive at the Elphinstone Reef to a depth of 90 meters, which is against the law. Diving deeper than 40 meters is not permitted in Egypt.On Jan. 5, a Russian died while diving in the Red Sea off the popular resort of Dahab. Two days later, two other Russian divers and an Egyptian scuba diving instructor disappeared while exploring a coral reef near Marsa Alam. Another Russian was found dead Jan. 16 near the shore at Ras Mohammed, a resort on the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula.Fatal scuba diving accidents are not common in the Red Sea, where thousands of foreigners come annually to scuba dive because of the water's famous coral reefs.-Associated Press
