Tourists returning from Egypt told to leave luggage behind as airport security is tightened in wake of disaster in Sinai The Egyptian security shutdown was sparked after British spies intercepted messages which showed Isil extremists had plotted a major terror attack in the region, the Telegraph can disclose.
The communications and “chatter” – uncovered by British intelligence only after the Russian passenger jet tragedy – are what led David Cameron to say it was “more likely than not” that a bomb brought the plane down on Saturday killing 224 people.
The intelligence resulted in Britain suspending all flights to and from Sharm el-Sheikh, leaving 20,000 British tourists stranded at the holiday resort.
Flights will resume on Friday with 20 aircraft carrying about 4,000 people back to Britain. But passengers were warned they would not be allowed to take luggage in the hold. T
he move suggests officials fear a bomb was smuggled into the hold of flight 7K9268 in the checked luggage. It came as it emerged Britain raised concerns around baggage handling at Sharm el-Sheikh airport ten months ago.
If British intelligence proves correct, it would be the first airline bombing by Isil extremists.
Downing Street also suggested that Britain could impose further travel restrictions on flights to and from other destinations in regions with Isil links amid concerns over airport security in the wake of the developments.
Number 10’s belief that the plane was brought down by a bomb was on Thursday strengthened by the the White House which released a statement saying “some information that has been learned” also pointed to a terror attack.
On Wednedsay David Cameron suspended all British flights to and from Sharm el-Sheikh.
Now the Telegraph understands that the crucial intelligence came after MI5, GCHQ and their US counterparts went back over communications of known fanatics in the region. Their trawl revealed “chatter” in the days before the crash pointing to an imminent attack. It is feared Isil affiliates in the Sinai region were behind the atrocity.