Cairo - Egyptian authorities are searching for survivors from a Cypriot-registered cargo ship that capsized in the Red Sea on Monday, police have told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

The bodies of two crew members have been pulled from the water, and 11 of the 26 men on board have been rescued. A search is underway for the remaining 13, police said.

The vessel capsized near Egypt's Red Sea port of Safaga, apparently in adverse weather conditions.

The "Ibn Battuta" sent a distress message early Monday. The ship was carrying a cargo of 6,500 tons of sand used for manufacturing glass, according to Egypt's official Middle East News Agency.

The ship had passed the Suez Canal and was bound for the United Arab Emirates.

Police say those rescued from the vessel include four Somalis, two Iraqis, one Bangladeshi, one Yemeni and one Ethiopian.

More than 1,000 passengers drowned in February 2006 when a ferry sank near the same port, in a case that sparked widespread anger at the ferry owners and the government's response. (dpa)