Britain, Russia Fly More Citizens Home From Egypt
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Monday November 09, 2015 - 12:07:17 in English News by
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More Russian and British tourists were due to leave the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday as investigators continued to work toward a conclusion about what caused an October 31 air disaster that killed 224 people. 
At least a dozen flights were scheduled to depart Monday afternoon from the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport to Moscow and various airports in Britain.
Britain's embassy in Cairo has been careful to label the departures not as evacuations but as tourists going home at the end of their trips. Still, the Foreign Office is advising against "all but essential travel by air" to or from the Red Sea destination because of the "significant possibility" that the Russian Metrojet crash was caused by an explosive device.
The tragedy prompted some European air carriers to curb or cut flights to the longtime tourism magnet at the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula.
British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said by the end of Sunday, 5,000 British citizens were to have left the Red Sea destination.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his government last week to facilitate the repatriation of Russian travelers from Egypt. Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said Saturday that up to 80,000 Russians were visiting the country, twice as many as previously estimated. On Sunday, a Russian official said about 11,000 have now returned home.
Militants claiming affiliation with the Islamic State group said they carried out the attack, however the head of Egypt's investigation team says no conclusions have been reached about what brought the airliner down. U.S. and British officials have said it's possible that a bomb may have destroyed the plane.
An unexplained noise during the final second of audio recordings from the cockpit has drawn intense attention, but Egypt's chief investigator, Ayman al-Muqaddam, said his team has not determined whether that signaled an explosion.
British media reported Saturday that a plane carrying tourists to Sharm El-Sheikh came within 300 meters of a rocket on August 23. However, officials in London and Cairo dismissed the incident.
Egypt's Foreign Affairs spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said Saturday that both governments were "fully aware that plane was in no danger" during military training near the Sharm el-Sheikh airport.
"Airliners [were] previously informed of military exercise [and] instructed of procedures," he said.
At least a dozen flights were scheduled to depart Monday afternoon from the Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport to Moscow and various airports in Britain.
Britain's embassy in Cairo has been careful to label the departures not as evacuations but as tourists going home at the end of their trips. Still, the Foreign Office is advising against "all but essential travel by air" to or from the Red Sea destination because of the "significant possibility" that the Russian Metrojet crash was caused by an explosive device.
The tragedy prompted some European air carriers to curb or cut flights to the longtime tourism magnet at the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula.
British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said by the end of Sunday, 5,000 British citizens were to have left the Red Sea destination.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his government last week to facilitate the repatriation of Russian travelers from Egypt. Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich said Saturday that up to 80,000 Russians were visiting the country, twice as many as previously estimated. On Sunday, a Russian official said about 11,000 have now returned home.
Militants claiming affiliation with the Islamic State group said they carried out the attack, however the head of Egypt's investigation team says no conclusions have been reached about what brought the airliner down. U.S. and British officials have said it's possible that a bomb may have destroyed the plane.
An unexplained noise during the final second of audio recordings from the cockpit has drawn intense attention, but Egypt's chief investigator, Ayman al-Muqaddam, said his team has not determined whether that signaled an explosion.
British media reported Saturday that a plane carrying tourists to Sharm El-Sheikh came within 300 meters of a rocket on August 23. However, officials in London and Cairo dismissed the incident.
Egypt's Foreign Affairs spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said Saturday that both governments were "fully aware that plane was in no danger" during military training near the Sharm el-Sheikh airport.
"Airliners [were] previously informed of military exercise [and] instructed of procedures," he said.
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Britain, Russia Fly More Citizens Home From Egypt
advertisements More Russian and British tourists were due to leave the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday as investigators continued to work toward a conclusion about what caused an October 31 air disaster that killed 224 people.