Egypt says whales in its Mediterranean waters not dangerous

The Environment Ministry has said all the whales in the Mediterranean Sea off the Egyptian coast are not aggressive or dangerous to human beings.

"All the whales registered inhabiting the Egyptian waters don't pose any danger to mankind," said the ministry in a statement on Thursday.

The statement came after a baby whale was caught on camera drifting close to the North Coast, where many holidaymakers went for a three-day feast marking the end of Ramadan.

A video clip circulated on social media has caused panic over the past two days as it depicted a whale that appeared near the shore in the Mediterranean in the Marina Compound, a major tourist hub in the North Coast.

The ministry said it is "a toothless baby fin whale," and that a team has been dispatched to monitor the involved area in an attempt to help the whale leave the shallow waters and get back to its natural habitat in deep sea waters.

Fin whales are an endangered species known as inhabiting Egyptian waters.

"Unprovoked, fin whales are harmless to humans," the ministry said.

The ministry told holidaymakers to refrain from acting aggressively when encountering a whale.

Whales are rare in the waters so close to the shores of Egypt. In May, a rare sperm whale was washed ashore in the Mediterranean Sea province of Matrouh. Endit