Italian European Union official Gianluca Di Gioia, 48, from Rome, was attacked by a tiger shark when he was swimming with friend Giuseppe Fappani in the Red Sea on Sunday
A tourist has died after being mauled to death by a tiger shark at a popular luxury holiday resort.
Italian EU official Gianluca Di Gioia, 48, from Rome, had gone out snorkelling at a beach close to the Sataya Resort on the Red Sea in Egypt in the moments before the attack on Sunday. He worked as part of the diplomatic service of the EU’s European External Action Service.
Gianluca had been in the sea with his friend Giuseppe Fappani, 69, as they celebrated the EU official’s birthday. But the pair were approached by a tiger shark as they swam about 150ft from the beach area.
According to Giuseppe’s wife who saw the attack, her husband swam toward Gianluca in an attempt to scare the shark. She told Corriere Della Sera Gianluca was bitten on the arms and legs before her husband tried to push the beast away for a moment before the shark returned.
Both men were rushed to a hospital in Port Ghalib following the attack. Gianluca died shortly after arriving at the hospital while Giuseppe has been discharged. News agency ANSA said the environmental ministry in Egypt said the attack happened outside the designated swimming zone near jetties in northern Marsa Alam. It added swimming out from the jetties was prohibited and that they would be closed for two days starting today.
While there are sharks in the Red Sea, encounters and attacks are relatively rare. The attack is similar to an incident in June 2023 where a Russian national was killed by a tiger shark along the Red Sea. Vladimir Popov, 23, had been swimming when he was savagely attacked by the tiger shark near Hurghada. The scene turned the water red as onlookers looked at him being eaten alive.
A shaken witness recounted to the Telegram channel Baza: “It’s a terrible thing, the remains of this guy are over there. I’m shaking. Right in front of my eyes, the shark ate that guy. I think I need a drink. I feel really bad”. Yury Popov, Vladimir’s father, spoke to news network 112 about the horrific attack: “My son was attacked by a shark, it all happened in seconds”.
