CAIRO (AFP) - A dawn collision between two vessels in the Gulf of Suez left at least 11 fishermen dead and 18 missing on Sunday, Egyptian officials said.

The vessel that struck the fishing boat carrying 40 men failed to stop following the accident, said Bakri Abul Hassan, the head of Egypt's main fishermen's trade union.

The accident occurred in the Gulf of Suez between Ras Ghareb on the Egyptian mainland and El-Tor on the Sinai Peninsula, he told AFP.

The bodies of 11 fishermen were retrieved from the Gulf, which links the Red Sea to the Suez Canal and Mediterranean.

Another 11 fishermen were pulled from the water and a search and rescue operation was underway for the 18 still missing.