| Ras- Mohamed |
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| Excursions in sharm : |
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Located at the Southern tip of the Sinai peninsula, Ras Mohamed (which translates from the Arabic as Cape
Mohamed) has always had immense strategic importance for the Ancient Egyptians who controlled trade on the Red
Sea. With the beginning of commercial capitalism, the Arabs, the Mamlukes, and later the Ottomans who ruled Egypt,
found it necessary to maintain a strong military presence in this area to secure the land and naval routes of the
profitable transit trade between Europe and the East, as well as the passage ways to Mecca. By the Seventeenth
century, the area started appearing on Portuguese and Spanish maps.
The Ras Mohamed point was anciently known as the point of meeting between Heroopoliticus sinus (Gulf of Suez) on
the west, and Ælaniticus sinus (Gulf of Aqaba).The name Ras Mohamed, it is said, comes from one of the wind
carved cliffs in the area which resembled the features of the Prophet Mohamed to the early Arabs who came to the
area in the first part of the Seventh Century.
Although there is no direct reference to the Ras Mohamed region, there is mention in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic
scriptures to the Red Sea, in particular its northern gulfs, where Ras Mohamed is their meeting point. It is at Tiran
where some scholars claim that Moses parted the sea, taking with him the "Israelites" towards the "Promised Land"
The strategic importance of the area was elevated further with the opening of the Suez Canal at the end of the
Nineteenth Century. This implied that whoever held the area of Ras Mohamed, Sharm-el-Sheikh, and the Islands of
Tiran and Sanafeer controlled the straits of Tiran, thereby controlling trade between Europe Africa, and Asia. It was
therefore only logical that Britain, the naval super power of the time, would strive, and consequently succeed in
seizing Sinai and the rest of Egypt from the Ottomans in 1882. Aiming to secure the passageway to India, Sinai was
added to the list of British strongholds en route which included Gibraltar, Malta, Cyprus, Alexandria, Suez, and Aden
in Yemen. Needless to say, the Brits kept a strong naval presence, the proof of which is available today in the many
wrecks found in the area.
As a result, a British Governor was assigned to Sinai, one of whom was in fact Parker Pasha. It should also be
mentioned that Laurence of Arabia used the area as a backdrop for his men at the time of the assault on Aqaba
during the Arab Revolt of the First World War.
It is probably quite ironic that the single most important factor that helped preserve this beautiful environment and
delicate echo balance during the last century has been war. The fact that a number of wars were waged in that area
between Egypt and Israel meant that it was inaccessible to civilians for the better part of the last fifty years.
Although never highly frequented due to its desolation and distance from the Nile Valley, the Ras Mohamed area was
declared by the Egyptian army as a military zone along with the rest of the Sinai Peninsula following the Tripartite
Suez War in 1956 in which the Israeli army briefly occupied the strategic Egyptian naval base at Sharm el Sheikh,
close to Ras Mohamed. The full length of the east coast of the Sinai was was monitored by United Nations
peacekeeping force (UNEF) with only the local Beduins allowed in the area, and those that worked in the oil or mining
industries.
In 1967, Israel occupied Sinai once more and held the area until 1982. Israel alleged at that time that the attack on
Egypt was a result of its request to the United Nations to withdraw UNEF and its closure of the Straits of Tiran to
Israeli shipping.This is how strategically important this area is.
After the signing of the Peace Agreement between Egypt and Israel in 1979, Egypt regained the Sinai in phases
ending in 1982 (Taba returned in 1989). Shortly after that, and in appreciation of the nature and diversity of the
area, the first Egyptian National Park was created in Ras Mohamed in 1983.
According to the Egyptian Israeli Peace Agreement, the Sinai Peninsula is divided into three sections, A,B, and C.
Section C is east of the Ras Mohamed-El Arish line. This area is demilitarized and the Sinai only visa applies here. It
is today under the supervision of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO). The Ras Mohamed area, however,
falls west of that line in section B which requires normal Egyptian visas
In July 2005, terrorists attacked nearby Sharm-el- Sheikh, killing many innocent people, mainly Egyptians. Given the
Egyptian security forces known efficiency and long experience in dealing with such issues, the area has since been
completely secured; the networks that supported these terrorists have since been dismantled with many brought to
justice. Following a very brief drop in tourism, the number of visitors had by January 2006 returned to its normal
levels, bringing the Sharm-el-Sheikh/Ras Mohamed area back to its place as of one of the top five tourist
destinations in the world.
Mohamed) has always had immense strategic importance for the Ancient Egyptians who controlled trade on the Red
Sea. With the beginning of commercial capitalism, the Arabs, the Mamlukes, and later the Ottomans who ruled Egypt,
found it necessary to maintain a strong military presence in this area to secure the land and naval routes of the
profitable transit trade between Europe and the East, as well as the passage ways to Mecca. By the Seventeenth
century, the area started appearing on Portuguese and Spanish maps.
The Ras Mohamed point was anciently known as the point of meeting between Heroopoliticus sinus (Gulf of Suez) on
the west, and Ælaniticus sinus (Gulf of Aqaba).The name Ras Mohamed, it is said, comes from one of the wind
carved cliffs in the area which resembled the features of the Prophet Mohamed to the early Arabs who came to the
area in the first part of the Seventh Century.
Although there is no direct reference to the Ras Mohamed region, there is mention in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic
scriptures to the Red Sea, in particular its northern gulfs, where Ras Mohamed is their meeting point. It is at Tiran
where some scholars claim that Moses parted the sea, taking with him the "Israelites" towards the "Promised Land"
The strategic importance of the area was elevated further with the opening of the Suez Canal at the end of the
Nineteenth Century. This implied that whoever held the area of Ras Mohamed, Sharm-el-Sheikh, and the Islands of
Tiran and Sanafeer controlled the straits of Tiran, thereby controlling trade between Europe Africa, and Asia. It was
therefore only logical that Britain, the naval super power of the time, would strive, and consequently succeed in
seizing Sinai and the rest of Egypt from the Ottomans in 1882. Aiming to secure the passageway to India, Sinai was
added to the list of British strongholds en route which included Gibraltar, Malta, Cyprus, Alexandria, Suez, and Aden
in Yemen. Needless to say, the Brits kept a strong naval presence, the proof of which is available today in the many
wrecks found in the area.
As a result, a British Governor was assigned to Sinai, one of whom was in fact Parker Pasha. It should also be
mentioned that Laurence of Arabia used the area as a backdrop for his men at the time of the assault on Aqaba
during the Arab Revolt of the First World War.
It is probably quite ironic that the single most important factor that helped preserve this beautiful environment and
delicate echo balance during the last century has been war. The fact that a number of wars were waged in that area
between Egypt and Israel meant that it was inaccessible to civilians for the better part of the last fifty years.
Although never highly frequented due to its desolation and distance from the Nile Valley, the Ras Mohamed area was
declared by the Egyptian army as a military zone along with the rest of the Sinai Peninsula following the Tripartite
Suez War in 1956 in which the Israeli army briefly occupied the strategic Egyptian naval base at Sharm el Sheikh,
close to Ras Mohamed. The full length of the east coast of the Sinai was was monitored by United Nations
peacekeeping force (UNEF) with only the local Beduins allowed in the area, and those that worked in the oil or mining
industries.
In 1967, Israel occupied Sinai once more and held the area until 1982. Israel alleged at that time that the attack on
Egypt was a result of its request to the United Nations to withdraw UNEF and its closure of the Straits of Tiran to
Israeli shipping.This is how strategically important this area is.
After the signing of the Peace Agreement between Egypt and Israel in 1979, Egypt regained the Sinai in phases
ending in 1982 (Taba returned in 1989). Shortly after that, and in appreciation of the nature and diversity of the
area, the first Egyptian National Park was created in Ras Mohamed in 1983.
According to the Egyptian Israeli Peace Agreement, the Sinai Peninsula is divided into three sections, A,B, and C.
Section C is east of the Ras Mohamed-El Arish line. This area is demilitarized and the Sinai only visa applies here. It
is today under the supervision of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO). The Ras Mohamed area, however,
falls west of that line in section B which requires normal Egyptian visas
In July 2005, terrorists attacked nearby Sharm-el- Sheikh, killing many innocent people, mainly Egyptians. Given the
Egyptian security forces known efficiency and long experience in dealing with such issues, the area has since been
completely secured; the networks that supported these terrorists have since been dismantled with many brought to
justice. Following a very brief drop in tourism, the number of visitors had by January 2006 returned to its normal
levels, bringing the Sharm-el-Sheikh/Ras Mohamed area back to its place as of one of the top five tourist
destinations in the world.
