CAIRO: Egyptian police said on Sunday they are currently negotiating with the kidnappers of two American tourists along with their Egyptian guide in the Sinai Peninsula. The kidnapper demands the release of one of his relatives who is serving a jail sentence in the city of Alexandria for drug trading and according to police, was caught with a big shipment. “We hope that the negotiations succeed soon,” Ahmed Abu Bakr, head of Northern Sinai Security told reporters. Abu Bakr added that the kidnapper threatened to abduct more people if his uncle is not released. Police said they are using the help of tribal leaders in Sinai to release the two Americans taken on Friday, while the elders affirmed to the police that the three are being treated well and provided with good food. The kidnapper was identified as Jirmy Abu Massouh, and that he belongs to a well-respected tribe in the peninsula. The two Americans are Michel Lewis, 50, and his wife Lisa Lewis, 40, and their guide Haitham Ragab. Following the Egyptian revolution a new wave of abducting visitors has hit the sun and sand Mecca of Egypt, costing the peninsula much needed tourism, as the majority of young men work with tourists related business in the area. Bedouin living in Sinai have suffered government neglect for decades, and with lack of infrastructure, limited job opportunities, especially inside the government, and casual and frequent arrests have helped alienate the Bedouin community from the rest of the country. Previous kidnappings in Sinai have not lasted this long and those taken were released unharmed.
