Saudi Arabia turns back 'unsafe' Egyptian ferry

Saudi authorities have refused to allow passengers to board an Egyptian ferry deemed unsafe, days after another ferry sank killing hundreds of people, a port official said yesterday.

"The ferry arrived in (the Saudi port of) Duba around midnight on Monday. We made our checks and found it was in a bad state. It was old," a port official in Jeddah told Reuters.

The ferry, called Al Salam 94, was forced to return to the Egyptian port of Suez without passengers. He did not say how many passengers were affected or when they would travel.

The other ship, the 35-year old Al Salam 98, sank early on Friday during a Red Sea voyage from Duba to the Egyptian port of Safaga. Over 900 people are feared to have died.

The Jeddah port official said Saudi safety measures had been tightened after the disaster.