- NEW: Bedouins in the Sinai have complained of nonexistent government services
- NEW: In February, two American tourists were briefly kidnapped
- The tourists are both 31 and were abducted while en route to a hotel, the report says
- The gunmen want the release of a man arrested on drug charges
(CNN) -- Gunmen kidnapped two American tourists Thursday in Egypt's Sinai region and demanded the release of a man who was arrested a day earlier for drug possession, state-run Ahram newspaper said.
The tourists, both 31, were in a car headed to a hotel from the town of Dahab when they were stopped, the newspaper said.
The gunmen forced them out of the car and took them away, demanding the release of a man named Eid Suleiman Etaiwy, the report said.
Etaiwy was arrested Wednesday with "a large amount of drugs" on him, the report said.
Kidnappings and daylight armed robberies have become increasingly common in the turbulent year since Egypt's long-ruling dictator Hosni Mubarak was overthrown.
The Sinai is one of the most underdeveloped areas in the country, and Bedouins have long complained of nonexistent government services.
In February, two American tourists were briefly kidnapped in the region. The kidnappers had demanded that some detainees be released, but it is unclear if these calls were met.
In January, 24 Chinese workers and a translator were kidnapped by Bedouins while on their way to a military-owned cement factory.
A group of armed Bedouins had blocked the road on which they were traveling. They wanted the Egyptian government to release prisoners.
The hostages were released after a day after Egyptian authorities intervened, China's state-run Xinhua news agency said.
