The Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt has identified three Vietnamese victims who were killed when a roadside bomb blast hit their tour bus near the world-famous Giza pyramids at 18:15 on 28 December (local time).

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli (second, right) visits the Vietnamese victims at the hospital (Photo: AFP/VNA)

The dead victims included Tran Hoa Khanh, born in 1961, from the central province of Thanh Hoa; Nguyen Thuy Quynh, born in 1962, from the capital city of Ha Noi; and Nguyen Trong Tien, born in 1989, from the south central province of Binh Thuan.

According to the embassy, there were 15 Vietnamese people and three Egyptians on the bus at that time. Besides the three Vietnamese victims, one Egyptian guide was also killed.

Right after the incident occurred, Egypt’s authorised officials brought the 12 injured persons to El-Haram hospital in Giza province. Doctors conducted surgery for three severely wounded people while the nine others have been treated and well recovered.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Egypt Tran Thanh Cong visited the wounded victims at the hospital, and worked with local officials, including Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat and Minister of Health and Population Hala Zayed, to seek solutions to the case.

On 29 December, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs worked with the Egyptian Ambassador to Viet Nam to accelerate the deployment of measures to assist the affected Vietnamese people and their families.

The ambassador said Egyptian leaders have paid due attention to dealing with the case. Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli, Minister of Tourism Rania Al-Mashat and Minister of Health and Population Hala Zayed had visited the Vietnamese people who were undergoing treatment at the hospital.

Egyptian authorities also launched the investigation into the bomb attack and pledged to promptly grant visas to relatives of the victims and representatives of relevant travel companies to come to Egypt to help the affected people.

The Egyptian Embassy in Viet Nam also requested Egyptian airlines to facilitate the travelling of the relatives of the victims and proposed the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism arrange accommodations for them; make procedures to compensate the victims; and work with the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt to properly handle the case.

The Vietnamese side appreciated the Egyptian government and people for their efforts in assisting the victims and thanked the Egyptian Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism and Minister of Health and Population for visiting the injured people.

The same day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested the Viet Nam Administration of Tourism under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to direct Saigontourist travel company to work with its Egyptian partners in order to help the victims, deal with related matters and facilitate the repatriation of the victims.

The ministry also instructed the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt to continue keeping close watch on the situation and work closely with local authorised agencies to ensure legitimate rights of the Vietnamese citizens.

In case of emergency, Vietnamese citizens can seek help from the embassy through the hotlines 20 106 039 6518 or the citizen protection hotline 84 981 8484 84 or the hotline of the Consular Department 096 5411 118.

(Source: VNA)