“What this makes clear – not just to the Egyptians but to other airports around the world: if we are concerned about their security we will not hesitate in taking the kind of action we have taken this week for the safety of British passengers”, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
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BRITAIN has become embroiled in a deepening diplomatic clash with Russia after the Kremlin accused Downing Street of a “shocking” failure to share intelligence that indicates the Russian plane crash over Sinai was caused by an Islamic State bomb. Hammond has, however, indicated that flights to rescue the stranded tourists could start on Friday.
“The Prime Minister held talks on the situation with President (Abdel Fatah) Sisi and, following further discussions with the airlines and the Egyptians, we have agreed on a package of additional security measures that is being put in place rapidly”.
“They believe that what Daesh (Islamic State) is saying has a good chance of being credible”.
“They were clearly celebrating”, NBC Nightly News quoted a USA official as saying. Instead, any checked-in bags were to be brought later on cargo planes. The investigator ruled out engine failure, it added. A statement on KLM’s website says the measure is “based on national and worldwide information and out of precaution”.
The intelligence sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said the evidence was not categorical and that there is still no hard forensic or scientific evidence to support the bomb theory. The hypothesis of a bomb on board was raised by Washington and London but described as “speculation” by Moscow.
They were meant to fly back on Thursday with easyJet but the flight was delayed until today.
The suspension is a heavy blow to Egypt’s vital tourism industry.
A USA government source said a few of the “chatter” intercepted about the bomb included conflicting details about whether the bomb was placed on the plane.
Mr McLoughlin said the United Kingdom routinely sent experts to airports around the world to check on security, and said this week’s events would “send a message” to other countries about the need to maintain standards.
One US official said that within the last two years, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration had assessed security at foreign airports, and that Sharm el Sheikh had a reputation inside the USA government for poor security.
This follows an announcement from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), advising against all but essential travel to Sharm el-Sheikh – causing all flights to and from the area to be officially suspended across the country. Most of those onboard are Russian and British tourists. He said the British authorities are working with their Egyptian counterparts and the airlines to introduce emergency measures to bring British tourists safely and securely back to the UK.
Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday that Moscow views the cartoon as “blasphemy”.
“I think that since Putin made the decision to cancel flights, most likely there is a genuine suspicion that it was a terrorist act”. There are an estimated 40,000 Russian tourists now in Egypt.
Hundreds of British tourists stranded in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh waited anxiously Friday for flights home as budget carrier easyJet said the Egyptian government had disrupted a few of its flights out of Sinai, the site of a Russian jetliner crash.
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British Airways and Thomas Cook have also confirmed they will be resuming flights tomorrow.
