The three bombings in Taba took at least 33 lives and wounded about 150 others. The majority were Israelis, in addition to Egyptians, Russians, and Italians. Taba lies on Egyptian territory in the Sinai Peninsula, near the Israeli border. Tel Aviv had captured Sinai in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and then returned it to Egypt in the 1979 agreement under which Cairo became the first Arab government to recognize the state of Israel. Taba is a popular vacation spot for Israelis. Media reports indicated that about 10,000 tourists were in the area at the time of the bombings.

Palestinian Authority president Yasir Arafat condemned the Taba bombings and sent a letter to Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak expressing his “solidarity with the families of the victims.” Another PA official told the media that “the continuation of Israel’s occupation and aggressions against the Palestinian people fuel the world’s anger.”

Hamas and Islamic Jihad, Palestinian groups that carry out suicide attacks against Israeli targets, denied responsibility for the bombings. “We emphasize that all Palestinian factions are focused on the enemy in the Palestinian arena,” said a Hamas spokesperson, reiterating that the group limits its attacks to Israel and the Occupied Territories.

Three previously unknown organizations have claimed responsibility for the Taba attacks. U.S. officials have put the blame on al-Qaeda.

“The Israelis will try to use these bombings to lump all Palestinian factions with groups like al Qaeda,” Issam Younis, director of the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, told the New York Times the day after the bombing. Although Israeli government officials have not tried to pin the blame on any specific group, they have speculated that al-Qaeda or affiliated organizations may have carried out the bombings at the Egyptian resort. Sharon and Mubarak agreed to increase cooperation between the two governments to “fight terrorism.”  
 
 
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