The Government has warned against “all but essential” travel via Sharm el-Sheikh airport in Egypt after concluding that intelligence suggested there was a “significant possibility” that a Russian airliner was brought down by a bomb.
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said all flights to the popular Red Sea resort had been halted and emergency security boosts were being put in place to ensure British tourists could fly home safely.
The decision follows a review of the airport’s security by a team of British experts which reported to a meeting of the Government’s emergency Cobra committee chaired by Prime Minister David Cameron.
Egypt’s foreign minister attacked the move as a “premature and unwarranted” step which would damage his country’s tourism industry.
But Mr Hammond said the safety of Britons came “above all other considerations” and the Government was prepared to take the criticism.
The dispute with Cairo – which has dismissed claims by so-called Islamic State to have brought down the aircraft with the loss of 224 lives on Saturday – came as Egypt’s president Abdel Fatah al-Sisi arrived in the UK for a scheduled visit.
He is due at Number 10 for talks with David Cameron tomorrow.
Mr Hammond said the decision to close down flights to the airport had been taken “very reluctantly” and praised Egyptian authorities for “moving heaven and earth to meet our demands on the ground”.
Stranded passengers would be returned to the UK, he said, but reassured others out there that t he popular Red Sea resort itself was still considered safe.
“We are working with the airlines and the Egyptian authorities to put in place emergency procedures for additional screening and additional security to ensure that they can get home safely either on their original scheduled return dates or if they wish to leave earlier – though I should emphasise that we are not changing out threat level with regard to the Sharm el-Sheikh resort itself.”
Mr Hammond apologised for the “immense disruption and inconvenience” caused – including to people who had been forced to return to hotels from the airport.
“I also recognise the immense impact that this will have on the Egyptian economy.
“But we have to put the safety and security of British nationals above all other considerations.
“When we are in possession of information we will not hesitate to act on it in order to protect that security and we will take whatever criticisms we receive.”
The US also said initial intelligence suggested the plane was brought down by a bomb.
All those on board – mostly Russian tourists – were killed when the a Metrojet flight bound for St Petersburg from Sharm came down in the Sinai desert on Saturday.
The nature of the crash and the lack of an SOS call have fuelled speculation that it was caused by a bomb or missile, although Cairo has sought to dismiss claims that the crash was the work of Islamist terrorists, such as the self-styled Islamic State.
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