TABA, Egypt (10 Oct 2004) -- Drive along the road between Nueiba and Taba on Egypt's popular Sinai Peninsula and there's little sign of the "cold peace" that elsewhere has characterised Egypt's ties with Israel since they signed a treaty in 1979. Warmly welcoming Hebrew language signs at the entrance to coastal holiday resorts in the Arab country beckon visiting Israelis to soak up the sun or try scuba diving in the Red Sea. At Taba's popular Hilton hotel near Egypt's border with the Jewish state, Israelis lured by the resort's proximity to the port city of Eilat liked to laze around the swimming pool or sit playing cards in the lobby. From an Israeli point of view, it was different from other parts of Egypt, where Israelis are generally unwelcome because of their government's policies towards the Palestinians. But the peace of these Sinai resorts was shattered on Thursday evening, as a blast damaged the facade of the Taba Hilton and explosions ripped into holiday camps around Ras Shaitan, about 45km to the south. The east coast of the Sinai Peninsula has traditionally been popular with Israeli holidaymakers looking for resorts close to home. Some of Sinai's hotels, including the Taba Hilton, were originally built by Israelis after they occupied the region in the 1967 Middle East war, until it was eventually handed back to Egypt as part of the 1979 peace treaty. In 1989 Taba was the last part of Egyptian territory returned, after international arbitrators upheld the Egyptian case that it was within the country's historic borders. | 
