Scuba diving in Sharm El Sheikh unaffected by Egypt's political protests

The recent chaos across Egypt due to the ongoing political demonstrations and protests does not appear to be having an effect on the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh according to a dive centre in the area.

Camel Dive Club and Hotel has put the record straight after recent media reports stated that the protests had spread to the Red Sea resort, saying that scuba diving holidays in the Red Sea were taking place as normal.

Clare Mucklow, from the diving club, said: "I would like to inform you about the current situation in Sharm el Sheikh, following some misleading media reports recently.

"After seven days of protests in Cairo and other cities around Egypt, Sharm el Sheikh has still not experienced any of the unrest that has been witnessed elsewhere. The entire resort is calm, with no evidence of disruption. Tourists are frequenting beaches, cafes, restaurants and hotels as normal.

"There are no restrictions on moving around Sharm el Sheikh, and the airport is fully open. Local excursions including diving, snorkelling, desert trips and visits to St Katherine's monastery are running as usual. We have approximately 40 guests of several nationalities diving with us at the moment. We had three boats departing this morning for daily diving at Ras Mohammed, local sites and SS Thistlegorm wreck."

Over the past week, Egypt has seen hundreds of thousands of anti-Mubarak demonstrators take to the streets of Cairo, Alexandria and Suez to protest against the President's position.

Over 80 people have died during the violent disturbances as police opened fire on the thousands of civilians who were protesting to remove President Mubarak from power.

Ms Mucklow added that though scuba diving in Sharm el Sheikh was running as normal, internet access is restricted and mobile phone text service are not functioning.

Regarding communications, it was added that internet access is "restricted" in many places in the country. Mobile phone networks are said to be "fully operational", although text services are not functioning.

President Hosni Mubarak announced yesterday that he would be standing down from his position at the next election later this year.