tiger shark tourist in egypt

Tiger shark beaten to death by locals after 10 foot monster killed Russian man, 23, in viral video at Egypt tourist spot

A 10 foot shark has been savagely killed by angry locals after it mauled a Russian tourist to death and toyed with his body for hours. Warning: Confronting images.

WARNING: Confronting images and details.

The tiger shark responsible for mauling a Russian tourist to death has been killed.

Vladimir Popov, 23, was attacked in front of stunned tourists while he was swimming at one of Egypt's Red Sea resorts in the city of Hurghada on Thursday.

Distressing footage circulating on social media showed the man screaming for his father as he is pulled underwater by the 10 foot shark several times. 

Popov could be heard crying out for "papa" as he tried to swim away.

The shark circled and attacked the Russian several times, with his legs lifting above the surface at one point while others tell him to swim to shore.

Witnesses claimed the tiger shark toyed with his body for two hours.

Locals later drove boats out to the sea and followed and then captured in a net what they believed was the animal that killed Popov.

The shark, which had one hook attached to its nostril, appeared to be alive as it was dumped onto the beach and surrounded by onlookers.

The tiger shark that killed a tourist in Egypt was caught and killed. Locals weren’t happy about the shark attack. pic.twitter.com/nvHVhJH3O0 — AlAudhli العوذلي (@AAudhli) June 9, 2023

One man holding a metal pole could be seen in a social media clip repeatedly beating the shark over the head and trying to pry open its mouth.

Egypt's Environment Ministry confirmed the tiger shark had been caught and would be examined in a laboratory to investigate what may have triggered the rare attack.

Researchers will investigate whether it was responsible for other incidents.

Popov's father Yury told local Egyptian media the pair went to the beach to "relax".

"My son was attacked by a shark. It all happened in seconds," he said.

"This meat grinder... it is just some kind of evil fate."

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Russian citizen mauled to death by tiger shark off Egypt’s Red Sea coast in rare attack

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CAIRO (AP) — A Russian man died after being mauled by a shark on Thursday off one of Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, Egyptian and Russian authorities said.

Egypt’s Environment Ministry said the man was killed after being attacked by a tiger shark in the waters near the city of Hurghada. Authorities closed off a 74-kilometer (46-mile) stretch of the coastline, announcing it will remain off-limits until Sunday.

The ministry later said it had caught the shark and was examining it in a laboratory to try and determine the reasons for the rare attack.

The Russian Consulate in Hurghada identified the man as a Russian citizen but did not give his name.

A video circulating online, purportedly of the attack, shows a man thrashing about in the water before being repeatedly attacked by a shark circling around him, then being dragged under.

Shark attacks are rare in the Red Sea coastal regions. However, in 2022, two fatal attacks in Hughada within days, killing an Austrian and a Romanian tourist .

Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, boast some of the country’s most renowned beach destinations and are popular with European tourists. Divers are attracted by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore, which offer a rich and colorful sea life.

Egypt has in recent years sought to revive the vital tourism sector, hurt by years of political instability, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Tiger sharks are large species that reside in tropical and temperate waters and are among sharks most cited by the International Shark Attack File for unprovoked attacks on humans.

Fatal shark attack of Russian man near Red Sea resort purportedly caught on video

CAIRO − A Russian man died after being mauled by a shark on Thursday off one of Egypt's Red Sea resorts, Egyptian and Russian authorities said.

Egypt's Environment Ministry said the man was killed after being attacked by a tiger shark in the waters near the city of Hurghada. Authorities closed off a 46-mile stretch of the coastline, announcing it will remain off-limits until Sunday.

The ministry later said it had caught the shark and was examining it in a laboratory to try and determine the reasons for the rare attack.

The Russian Consulate in Hurghada identified the man as a Russian citizen but did not give his name.

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Purported video of attack circulates online

A video circulating online, purportedly of the attack, shows a man thrashing about in the water before being repeatedly attacked by a shark circling around him, then being dragged under.

Shark attacks are rare in the Red Sea coastal regions. However, in 2022, two fatal attacks in Hughada within days,  killing an Austrian  and  a Romanian tourist .

Red Sea resorts

Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, boast some of the country’s most renowned beach destinations and are popular with European tourists. Divers are attracted by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore, which offer a rich and colorful sea life.

Egypt has in recent years sought to revive the vital tourism sector, hurt by years of political instability, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Tiger sharks are large species that reside in tropical and temperate waters and are among sharks most cited by the International Shark Attack File for unprovoked attacks on humans.

Russian man killed in shark attack off Egypt’s Red Sea resort

Coastline to remain off limits with a ban on swimming, snorkelling and other water sports activities until Sunday.

A Russian man has died after being attacked by a shark off the coast of Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Hurghada, officials have said.

The Environment Ministry said that the man was killed after being mauled by a tiger shark in the waters near Hurghada on Thursday.

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The authorities closed off a 74-kilometre (46-mile) stretch of the coastline, and announced that it will remain off limits with a ban on swimming, snorkelling and other water sports activities until Sunday.

“An attack by a tiger shark on a beachgoer … led to his death,” the ministry posted on Facebook, without providing further details.

A video circulating online, purportedly of the attack, shows a man thrashing about in the water before being repeatedly attacked by a shark circling around him, and then being dragged under.

The ministry later said it had caught the shark and was examining it in a laboratory to try and determine the reasons for the rare attack.

The Russian Consulate in Hurghada identified the man as a Russian citizen but did not give his name.

Russian Consul-General Viktor Voropayev told state-owned TASS news agency that the Egyptian authorities had confirmed to him the death of the Russian national who was born in 1999.

“The victim was not a tourist, but a permanent resident of Egypt,” Voropayev told the news agency.

A diver who arrived on the scene just after the attack said people had rushed to help the victim after a lifeguard from a nearby hotel raised the alarm, but were not able to reach him in time.

History of shark attacks

Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, boast some of the country’s most renowned beach destinations and are popular with European tourists. Divers are attracted by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore, which offer a rich and colorful sea life.

Shark attacks are rare in the Red Sea coastal regions.

However, in 2022, there were two fatal attacks in Hurghada within days, killing an Austrian and a Romanian tourist.

In 2018, a Czech tourist was killed by a shark off a Red Sea beach. A German tourist was similarly killed in 2015.

In 2010, a spate of five attacks in five days unusually close to the shore of tourist hot spot Sharm el-Sheikh killed one German and injured four other foreign tourists.

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Tiger shark clubbed to death after killing tourist in Egyptian resort Hurghada

A 10ft tiger shark was beaten to death after it killed a Russian tourist in the Egyptian resort of Hurghada.

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A tiger shark was clubbed to death in a savage revenge attack after the beast killed a tourist at a popular resort in the Red Sea.

Tourists watched in horror as Vladimir Popov, 23, was dragged under the water and mauled to death by the 10ft “meat grinder” shark in Egypt’s Hurghada.

Popov’s helpless dad Yury was watching from the shore as his son desperately screamed “papa, papa” while the predator hunted him.

Witnesses said the shark savaged Popov before toying with his body for a harrowing two hours in the water.

“It’s eating his remains now,” one witness can be heard saying in footage of the horrifying incident, the New York Post reported.

Footage then showed the beast being hauled out of the sea on a small boat in a net before being dumped on the beach and ferociously beaten.

The shark appeared to be alive as it writhed on the sand with a hook in its eye.

The video showed a man savagely smashing it over the head with what appeared to be a stick or a metal pole.

Egyptian authorities said they caught the shark that attacked the Russian man.

Researchers are now probing whether the shark was responsible to any previous incidents in the area.

Popov was on a long stay in Egypt - possibly avoiding the call up to Putin’s war in Ukraine.

His dad Yury told local media: “We went to the beach to relax. My son was attacked by a shark. It all happened in seconds.

“This meat grinder happened in 20 seconds... it is just some kind of evil fate.”

Initial reports suggested Popov was with his girlfriend at the time - but local media reports said she’s currently in Russia.

It’s understood a woman who was also in the water managed to escape.

The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the death of a citizen from a shark attack.

When the incident happened, voices in the sea pleaded: “Swim away, swim away! Quick! A shark!”

One eyewitness said: “It was about seven metres from the shore.”

Another said: “The shark appeared, and immediately bit the man.

“He tried to swim away from the shark, but he couldn’t.

“It dragged the body for two hours. It constantly dragged him under the water.”

Russian tourists have been told to be vigilant in the popular resort and follow the instructions of hotel staff.

It comes after a 37-year-old tourist was ambushed by a shark at a Red Sea resort in Aqaba, Jordan, in June 2021.

The man was parasailing when he suddenly began to graze the ocean.

A shark then leapt from the water and chomped his leg - and the tourist miraculously managed to not get dragged beneath the water.

He was left brutally bitten and sustained serious injuries from the attack.

And in July last year, a tourist was mauled to death by a shark in Sahl Hasheesh, Egypt.

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The 68-year-old snorkeller had apparently told her partner she was just going back into the water “for a moment” before being killed.

Her lifeless body was pulled out of the sea after being located on a reef, according to horrified eyewitnesses.

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission

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Father describes the moment he helplessly watched as his son was mauled to death by a tiger shark at a beach in Egypt, report says

• A 23-year-old Russian man was killed by a shark in Egypt's Red Sea resort town of Hurghada.
• His father said he watched helplessly as the "meat grinder" animal killed his son in 20 seconds.
• A video of the attack shows the man shouting "papa" as the shark circles near a tourist beach.

The father of a 23-year-old man who was killed by a tiger shark in Egypt described the moment he helplessly watched his son being mauled to death.

"We went to the beach to relax," Yury Popov, a Russian national, told the Telegram news outlet 112 . "My son was attacked by a shark. It all happened in seconds."

A video of the attack shows his son, Vladimir, flailing in the water and calling out "papa" as the shark circles him. People on the beach can be heard screaming in horror. Another video showed people swimming in the water, racing to escape the horrific scene.

Popov said that the situation was all the more shocking because it happened at what he thought was a safe beach.

"What kind of help can you give? This meat grinder happened in 20 seconds. He was just dragged under the water," Popov said.

Egypt's environment ministry confirmed that a man had been killed by a tiger shark in the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada on Thursday.

Related stories

Vladimir had moved to Hurghada with his father and bought an apartment a few months prior, according to the Russian outlet Baza .

Some reports said that Vladimir's girlfriend escaped the waters and witnessed the attack from the beach — but this has not been confirmed.

Other videos show the animal being captured and taken to shore.

Tiger sharks commonly reach 10 to 14 feet in length and weigh from 850 to 1,400 pounds.

Egypt's environment ministry said that the shark displayed "abnormal behavior" and would be studied to determine whether the animal was linked to previous shark attacks.

There were two deadly shark attacks in Hurghada last year: a Romanian woman and an Austrian woman were killed within days of each other near the area.

It's rare for sharks to attack humans. Only five of the 57 unprovoked shark bites that were reported last year were fatal, according to the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File .

Sharks have been known to attack humans when confused or curious , and scientists have said there is no objective evidence that sharks bite humans because they want to eat them.

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Russian dies in shark attack off Egypt's Red Sea coast

Cairo (AFP) – A Russian man was killed on Thursday when a shark attacked him off the coast of Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Hurghada, authorities said.

Issued on: 08/06/2023 - 20:54

"An attack by a tiger shark on a beachgoer... led to his death," Egypt's environment ministry posted on Facebook, without providing further details.

Russian media said the victim was a Russian national in his 20s, and video circulated on social media appearing to show the incident.

Russian Consul-General Viktor Voropayev told state-owned TASS news agency that the Egyptian authorities had confirmed to him the death of the Russian national who was born in 1999.

"The victim was not a tourist, but a permanent resident of Egypt," Voropayev told the news agency.

Video footage said to be of the incident was widely circulated on social media in Egypt, showing a person struggling to escape from the shark.

Egypt's environment ministry said a team had captured the shark "to inspect it", saying it had displayed "abnormal behaviour... resulting in the incident".

It said water activities would be suspended for two days starting on Friday, pointing to previous attacks on people by the same type of shark.

The Red Sea is a popular tourist destination, where sharks are common but rarely attack people who swim within authorised areas.

Last July, two women, an Austrian and a Romanian, were killed in a shark attack near Hurghada.

In 2018, a Czech tourist was killed by a shark off a Red Sea beach after a similar attack killed a German tourist in 2015.

In 2010, a spate of five attacks in five days unusually close to the shore of tourist hotspot Sharm el-Sheikh killed one German and injured four other foreign tourists.

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Man kills the shark that devoured his son in Egypt tragedy

The shark was captured after consuming the Russian man

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A tiger shark killed Vladimir Popov , a 23-year-old Russian man, on a beach in Hurghada, Egypt , in the Red Sea on Thursday. The chilling images have been shared around the world.

His father, Yury Popov, could do nothing to save his son, who endured a gruelling and fateful two hours as the animal lashed out at him.

The shark was finally caught by a local boat and washed ashore. It was then that Yury Popov beat the three-metre shark to death. The father was devastated and explained to the country's media that it all happened in just 20 seconds.

"It's a cruel fate," he lamented. In addition to Vladimir, another woman was also in the water, but was eventually able to avoid the attack unharmed. The images of the tragedy were recorded by some nearby boats that could do nothing for the boy's life.

The shocking video of the young man beating eaten

In the video you can see the man swimming near the shore of Dream Beach Sheraton , when suddenly he is surprised by the animal that begins to attack him.

The boy starts to move around, with no fixed direction, when the fin of a large shark can be seen next looming next to him.

The victim is a 23-year-old man who was on holiday with his father, and you can even hear him shouting: "Dad, Dad" until the water turns completely red.

"Oh my God!" another tourist can be heard shouting.

Once the man did not move, the shark appeared again, just as a rescue boat arrived, but it was too late to save his life.

"A Russian citizen died as a result of a shark attack," Russian consul general in Hurghada Viktor Voropayev was quoted as saying by TASS.

The same news source then identified the victim as 'V. Popov'.

What species of shark can be found in the Red Sea?

Reef sharks : they live in coral reefs and can reach almost two meters.

Hammerhead sharks : the top predators in the area.

Shortfin mako : this species was responsible for nine attacks on humans between 1580 and 2022.

Mako sharks : they weigh between 150 and 200 kilograms.

Oceanic whitetip shark : among the least aggressive in the Red Sea.

Tiger sharks : surprisingly fast.

Great white shark : the king of sharks, can be found all over the Mediterranean Sea.

Whale Shark : totally tame, almost whale-like.

Thresher Sharks : they are extremely sensitive to light and sound, so it is recommended not to make frantic or noisy movements.

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Egypt mummifies shark that ate russian man to display in museum.

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WARNING: Graphic Content  

Museum specialists in Egypt are mummifying the shark that savagely ate a Russian man swimming at a popular resort beach so that the monstrous predator can be put on display.

Specialists at the Institute of Marine Sciences and the Red Sea Reserves began the embalming process of the animal on Monday, local outlet Al Arabiya reported.

Once the process is completed, the mummified shark will be on display in the institute’s museum.

Body parts belonging to the man who was ravaged, Vladimir Popov, were discovered inside the animal, confirming to authorities they had captured the shark that was involved in Thursday’s attack near the Elysees Dream Beach Hotel at the popular beach resort, Hurghada.

Horrifying video footage of the attack shows Popov, 23, splashing frantically in the ocean before getting dragged underwater as fearful onlookers cry out for help.

Museum specialists extracted half of the Russian man’s body from inside the shark, including his head, chest, and arms. Soon after the accident, fishermen found the other half of his remains out at sea.

The shark nearly consumed all of Popov’s body, but discarded the second half after noticing a fishermen’s boat attempting to come to the scene and help the man.

After pulling the lower half of Popov’s body out of the water, the fisherman chased the shark and caught it in order to have specialists in Hurghada analyze and dissect it.

Officials are hoping that by analyzing the shark they might be able to come up with a plan to prevent other ones from attacking beach-goers.

According to Al Arabiya, Governor of the Red Sea Major General Amr Hanafi is looking into installing nets at some beaches, hotels, and tourist villages in order to prevent sharks from reaching swimmers.

Initial reports claimed that Popov was a Russian tourist, however, Russia’s consul general in Hurghada confirmed Popov had been living in Egypt for several months.

Popov’s girlfriend reportedly managed to escape the water unscathed as bystanders unsuccessfully tried to save him.

The slain man’s father said the pair had “gone to the beach to relax” when all of a sudden, his son “was attacked by a shark.”

The attack left beachgoers stunned, with many waiting to bludgeon the shark to death after a fisherman dragged it ashore.

Video of the scene shows the group horrifically beating the animal, and it concludes with the cameraman even posing for a selfie as the savage scene unfolds in the background.

It’s unclear if the shark that ate Popov was involved in any other reported incidents in the area.

Though shark attacks are rare in the Red Sea coastal regions, last year, sharks killed two women  — an Austrian and a Romanian — just days apart in the same popular tourist location.

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Tiger Shark That Likely Ate Tourist In Egypt Beaten To Death By Beachgoers

A tiger shark, believed to be responsible for attacking a Russian tourist in Egypt, was beaten to death by local beachgoers.

A shocking incident took place at one of Egypt's Red Sea resorts in the city of Hurghada last Thursday, where 23-year-old Vladimir Popov was attacked by a tiger shark while he was swimming. It happened in front of shocked tourists. A video circulating on social media captured the terrifying moments as the man struggled, screamed and attempted to escape the shark's relentless attacks.

Eyewitnesses said the tiger shark circled around Popov, toying with his body for approximately two hours before dragging him underwater, Sky News reported. The media outlet later reported that local beachgoers took matters into their own hands after the attack. They ventured out into the sea on boats and managed to capture the shark responsible for his death, using a net.

Another video surfaced online depicting a disturbing scene where a group of people captured the tiger shark, which they believed killed Popov. It shows people in boats capturing a large tiger shark. In the footage, one individual can be seen wielding a metal pole and repeatedly striking the shark's head, while others attempt to forcibly open its mouth, BBC reported.

Egypt's Environment Ministry previously confirmed that the tiger shark involved in the incident had been captured. It said the shark will be taken to a laboratory for examination to understand the factors that may have triggered the rare attack.

It remains unclear whether the captured shark and the one seen in the video are the same. To address concerns and ensure safety, officials have taken action by closing off a 45-mile stretch of the coastline. The restricted area remained off-limits to people intending to swim or participate in water sports activities till Sunday.

Tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) are recognized as formidable predators and have the second-highest number of reported attacks on humans, following the white shark. While tiger sharks are generally curious and not typically aggressive when encountered, they are among the top three species commonly associated with shark attacks and fatalities.

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Fins, fillets and folklore: the enduring allure of shark meat in Egypt's historic Suez

At the bustling al ansari fish market, the illegal trade in shark meat and fins persists, reflecting the complex interplay of tradition, economy and ecology in the city.

Nestled in the heart of Suez, one of Egypt 's most historic cities, the Al Ansari fish market has been supplying fresh catches from the Red Sea to residents and beyond for decades.

The market's vibrant display of exotic fish, from the geometric boxfish to the crocodile fish – which resembles a cartoon version of the fearsome predator – is a testament to the rich biodiversity of the region.

Species travel north from the Red Sea and are caught in the Gulf of Suez. The canal's northern connection to the Mediterranean also adds to the variety of fish at Al Ansari.

Amid the myriad colours and shapes, one offering stands out: shark meat, regularly consumed by many Suez residents who consider it a delicacy.

“Suez residents have eaten shark meat for generations. I personally love to eat it, it's sweet and delicious,” Mohamed Ali Barghout, 49, a ship captain and longtime resident, tells The National .

“Those who have a taste for it like a relatively young fish and they won't buy a mature one, because when it's young, the meat has the strongest flavour and is at its most tender.”

Despite being protected under Egyptian environmental law, sharks find their way into local fishermen's trawling nets by accident and, subsequently, on to the tables of the Al Ansari market, according to Ibrahim Mohamed, a 43-year-old fishmonger with three medium-sized sharks among his impressive display.

Other stalls similarly display various species of shark, from smaller hammerheads to tiger and zebra sharks, all native to the Red Sea.

While smaller sharks are sold to locals, larger ones are often chopped up and sold as generic fish fillets to suppliers outside Suez, including some of Cairo's seafood restaurants.

“I think many people from Cairo would be surprised by how much of the fish fillets they eat at restaurants is shark meat. I sell a fair bit to suppliers in Cairo,” Mr Mohamed says.

“But you can't sell mature shark meat to Suez residents, they know the taste too well. I, for example, can tell you the age and species of any fish that I put in my mouth. It's not a talent, it's just because we grow up around the sea and eat a lot of fish all our lives.”

Mr Mohamed acknowledges the illegal nature of hunting sharks but points to the challenges of enforcement.

“It would be very difficult to check every net of every fisherman that goes through the Gulf of Suez each day,” he explains.

The demand for shark meat, rooted in Suez's culinary traditions, further complicates the issue. According to fish vendors who spoke to The National during a recent visit, demand for the meat is steady, logically necessitating a more reliable supply than the odd sharks being pulled up accidentally in nets.

“I can't speak for any fishermen who go out to hunt for sharks specifically because that is not my business, but I can tell you that many fishermen are afraid of them,” explains Ramadan Monsef, 45, who owns and operates a fish-cleaning stall at the market.

He recounts an urban myth often retold at the market, detailing the discovery of a man's leg inside a tiger shark's stomach.

His job is to clean fresh fish bought by market-goers of their guts, bones and other unwanted parts. A few times a week, he is given sharks to clean and gut for customers.

The allure of shark in Suez extends beyond its taste, as evidenced by Mr Monsef's collection of dried shark fins.

From inside his small store, he pulls out a rag on which he lays out several fins ranging in size from small to medium, selling for between 200 and 400 Egyptian pounds (about $4.25-$8.50) apiece. The fins are sought after by male customers as a supposed remedy for erectile dysfunction, despite the lack of scientific evidence supporting this claim.

The trade in shark fins at the fish market, while small-scale, echoes the global shark fin trade that has pushed many species to the brink of extinction. The demand for shark fin soup, a luxury dish in Chinese cuisine, has led to the cruel practice of shark finning, where sharks are caught, their fins cut off, and their bodies discarded back into the ocean.

Mr Monsef says Chinese businessmen visit him to buy shark fins directly. “I reserve the really good varieties for them. I have sold some for above 1,200 pounds,” he says.

The Al Ansari market, with its colourful displays and hum of daily activity, encapsulates the essence of Suez – a city where the sea is not just sustenance but a way of life. The shark meat trade, woven into the community's fabric, serves as evidence of the resilience and adaptability of a people who have long relied on the Red Sea's bounty.

As the world grapples with the urgent need to protect marine ecosystems, Suez's sharks serve as a reminder that conservation efforts must account for the complex social, economic and cultural factors shaping our interactions with the natural world.