CAIRO: Egyptian authorities have released five French tourists and four Egyptians accused of endangering themselves by travelling on an unauthorised desert safari, a security official said on Thursday.

The tourists, aged between 42 and 85, were arrested on Tuesday in the Red Sea resort of Marsa Alam after a safari to the nearby Wadi el-Ghadir organised by an Egyptian tour operator, state media had said.

“The French were released after a brief detention,” the official told AFP.

Tour companies must get security permits to conduct desert safaris in Egypt.

In September, 11 European tourists were kidnapped by armed bandits and taken across the border to Sudan and Chad.

The hostages, who were held for 10 days, were released following a shootout between some bandits and Sudanese troops that killed six hostage-takers. –AFP