The Palestinian refugee believed to be the mastermind of bomb attacks on Israeli tourists in Egypt began dressing and talking like a Muslim fundamentalist more than a year ago, his neighbors and relatives said Tuesday. Ayad Said Saleh, who died in the worst of the bombings, was a religious fanatic who may have been linked to Islamic militants outside Egypt, but not necessarily Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida, investigators said.
| "Coulda been somebody else. Y'never know..." |
A day after the Ministry of Interior said it believed Saleh was behind the Oct. 7 blasts, neighbors and relatives said they can't believe he was a terrorist, but they did see a sharp change in his behavior. The 25-year-old taxi driver and school dropout grew his beard longer and exchanged T-shirts and slacks for the midcalf garb of fundamentalists. If a woman said hello, he wouldn't respond. He ignored neighbors whose observance fell short of his standards. In the street, the young taxi driver stared at the ground, avoiding the risk of inadvertent eye contact with a woman.
| Yeah. That sounds pretty wahhabi... |
| Damned miserable Egyptian health care system, couldn't even refill this guy's perscription for mellaril. |
Maybe he was plotting a terrorist attack, "but he never showed anything or told us anything," his 17-year-old sister, Falesteen told The Associated Press. "For me, he was just a normal guy. His only problem was that he wasn't giving us money" to help support the family. Authorities say Saleh plotted and executed three car-bomb blasts targeting Israeli tourists that killed at least 34 people and sheared the facade off a 10-story wing of the Taba Hilton hotel. |