Remains of a Faceless Body… What Did the “Shark of Hurghada” Do to the Russian Youth?

The body of a young Russian man who was attacked by a shark in Hurghada, eastern Egypt, arrived at the morgue on Thursday “deformed and missing from many parts”, said Ismail al-Arabi, deputy health minister in the Red Sea governorate.

“According to data recorded by the Directorate of Health in the Red Sea, the body has been sent to the morgue of Hurghada General Hospital in different parts,” al-Arabi told Sky News Arabia. “Even the face is disfigured and difficult to recognize, and the head is completely destroyed.”

“Many parts of the corpse were missing, especially from the upper half,” he said, adding that the corpse is now under the control of the public prosecution and forensic medicine department, which is conducting the necessary autopsy as part of the investigation.

“The body of the deceased will not be handed over to his relatives until the end of forensic investigations, which will serve the course of investigations into the incident,” the official said.

A source at Hurghada General Hospital told Sky News Arabia that the shark had eaten the tourists’ rib cage, parts of the abdomen and arms, and mutilated the face.

Local media also reported that the fish cut the body of the Russian tourist in half.

Just before the shark was caught, Ghareeb Saleh, the head of the fishermen in Hurghada, told Sky News Arabia that part of the tourist’s body was dumped near the beach.

Hassan al-Tayeb, founder of the Red Sea Rescue and Environmental Protection Association, told Sky News Arabia that the young Russian came to Hurghada for the purpose of residence, not tourism.

He said his father came to him 24 hours before the accident and he planned to invest and live in Hurghada.

The governor of the Red Sea decided, as of Friday:

The area stretching from al-Gouna in the north to Abu Soma Bay in the south will be closed until Sunday, when beach surveys are complete.

“Require all hotels and villages along the coast of the Red Sea governorate to appoint a sufficient number of qualified rescuers, who have received the necessary courses and certificates to carry out their work.”

The continued prohibition of all fishing activities along the coast of the Red Sea governorate, during the period of prohibition of fishing determined by the decision of the Chairman of the Fish Resources Authority.

The ban includes all kinds of recreational fishing carried out by tourist and private boats in Hurghada and the rest of the province’s cities in the south, starting on June 15.