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| Airlines to return British holidaymakers from Egypt without luggage | Airlines to return British holidaymakers from Egypt without luggage |
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| Thousands of British tourists will fly back from Sharm el-Sheikh without their luggage on Friday, after David Cameron gave the go-ahead for air travel to resume with very tight security restrictions. | |
| About 25 flights will take off from the Egyptian beach resort, clearing a backlog of up to 4,000 stranded holidaymakers who had been due to return since the Foreign Office advised against all travel through the airport on Wednesday night. | |
| The organised return comes amid reports that a bomb may have been smuggled into the cargo hold of the Russian Metrojet airliner which disintegrated above the Sinai desert. | |
| The BBC today said that based on intercepted messages between militants in the Sinai area, UK security service investigators suspect someone with access to the aircraft’s baggage compartment inserted an explosive device inside or on top of the luggage just before the plane took off. | |
| Reports in other media indicated that intelligence had picked up “chatter” between known radical groups in the region after a retrospective trawl of communications. | |
| On Thursday night president Barack Obama said the US was taking “very seriously” the possibility that a bomb caused the plane to crash. He spoke out on the subject during an interview with a radio station in Seattle. | |
| The evacuation of British tourists from Sharm el-Sheikh was allowed to proceed after Downing Street said there had been an agreement with the Egyptian authorities on a “package of additional security measures”, including empty holds, extra screening on passengers, and checks on their hand luggage. | |
| Several airlines confirmed that they would begin “rescue flights”, including Thomson, Monarch, Easyjet and BA, which told passengers that the luggage would be sent back by a government agency and returned by courier within the next seven days. | |
| Related: Egypt high on UK's airports watch list even before Sinai crash, sources say | Related: Egypt high on UK's airports watch list even before Sinai crash, sources say |
| A Downing Street spokeswoman said the UK government was “working with the airlines to ensure there are suitable arrangements in place to reunite passengers with their belongings as soon as possible”. She stressed that outbound flights from the UK to Sharm el-Sheikh remain suspended and that the Foreign Office “continues to advise against all but essential travel by air to or from the airport”. | A Downing Street spokeswoman said the UK government was “working with the airlines to ensure there are suitable arrangements in place to reunite passengers with their belongings as soon as possible”. She stressed that outbound flights from the UK to Sharm el-Sheikh remain suspended and that the Foreign Office “continues to advise against all but essential travel by air to or from the airport”. |
| The approval was given after a dramatic 24 hours in which Cameron decided to ground all planes because of the UK’s concerns that the Russian plane that crashed over Sinai on Saturday could have been brought down by an Islamic State bomb. | The approval was given after a dramatic 24 hours in which Cameron decided to ground all planes because of the UK’s concerns that the Russian plane that crashed over Sinai on Saturday could have been brought down by an Islamic State bomb. |
| The surprise move to suspend flights on Wednesday evening provoked diplomatic tensions with both Russia and Egypt, whose president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, was coincidentally visiting Downing Street for talks. He was in the air on his way to London when Cameron took the decision without consulting Cairo, with the UK claiming that new information had come to light. | The surprise move to suspend flights on Wednesday evening provoked diplomatic tensions with both Russia and Egypt, whose president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, was coincidentally visiting Downing Street for talks. He was in the air on his way to London when Cameron took the decision without consulting Cairo, with the UK claiming that new information had come to light. |
| Egypt’s foreign minister called the move premature and unwarranted, but Sisi took a calmer tone on Thursday, saying his country understood the UK’s reasons for wanting to keep its citizens safe. “We understood their concern because they are really interested in the safety and security of their nationals,” he said. | Egypt’s foreign minister called the move premature and unwarranted, but Sisi took a calmer tone on Thursday, saying his country understood the UK’s reasons for wanting to keep its citizens safe. “We understood their concern because they are really interested in the safety and security of their nationals,” he said. |
| Staff at Sharm El-Sheikh airport have told the Guardian that the UK had complained about lax security over a year ago, asking for a tightening of procedures. Asked what he thought was the problem, the staff member said: “The system was the problem. the British complained then that they weren’t checking people enough. We should have done more. The security could have been improved by putting another scanner outside and updating the others.” | Staff at Sharm El-Sheikh airport have told the Guardian that the UK had complained about lax security over a year ago, asking for a tightening of procedures. Asked what he thought was the problem, the staff member said: “The system was the problem. the British complained then that they weren’t checking people enough. We should have done more. The security could have been improved by putting another scanner outside and updating the others.” |
| At a joint appearance with Cameron, Sisi confirmed that Britain had raised concerns about security at Sharm el-Sheikh airport concerns for at least 10 months before the crash, but insisted that the UK had been “happy” with the improvements made. | At a joint appearance with Cameron, Sisi confirmed that Britain had raised concerns about security at Sharm el-Sheikh airport concerns for at least 10 months before the crash, but insisted that the UK had been “happy” with the improvements made. |
| Downing Street gave a slightly different account, saying there had been “good cooperation” and that the Egyptians had responded to “some of the concerns” raised by the UK when aviation experts were sent last year to make checks at the airport and resort where up to 20,000 Britons are staying at any one time. | Downing Street gave a slightly different account, saying there had been “good cooperation” and that the Egyptians had responded to “some of the concerns” raised by the UK when aviation experts were sent last year to make checks at the airport and resort where up to 20,000 Britons are staying at any one time. |
| Related: Fears for Sharm el-Sheikh's future as tourists vent frustration | Related: Fears for Sharm el-Sheikh's future as tourists vent frustration |
| The message from Russia was less conciliatory, as Cameron was warned during a 10-minute phone call with president Vladimir Putin not to jump to conclusions that the disaster was caused by a bomb. Downing Street stressed that the exchange was “cordial”, but a statement from the Kremlin afterwards said: “Vladimir Putin stressed that assessment of the causes of the crash should be based on the data that would become available in the course of the official investigation that is currently under way.” | The message from Russia was less conciliatory, as Cameron was warned during a 10-minute phone call with president Vladimir Putin not to jump to conclusions that the disaster was caused by a bomb. Downing Street stressed that the exchange was “cordial”, but a statement from the Kremlin afterwards said: “Vladimir Putin stressed that assessment of the causes of the crash should be based on the data that would become available in the course of the official investigation that is currently under way.” |
| Asked whether Putin had expressed any criticism of British actions, Cameron’s spokeswoman said: “The president underlined that all countries should wait for the investigations to be completed. The PM was very clear that he would be driven by what would be right for the safety of British citizens and we were right to take the actions that we did.” | Asked whether Putin had expressed any criticism of British actions, Cameron’s spokeswoman said: “The president underlined that all countries should wait for the investigations to be completed. The PM was very clear that he would be driven by what would be right for the safety of British citizens and we were right to take the actions that we did.” |
| Earlier, a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said it was “truly shocking” that it appeared that the UK had not shared intelligence with Russia that it might have had suggesting the disaster was caused by a bomb. Cameron has used cautious language about the causes of the disaster that killed 224 people, but made it clear that UK intelligence pointed to it “more likely than not” being brought down by a bomb. | Earlier, a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said it was “truly shocking” that it appeared that the UK had not shared intelligence with Russia that it might have had suggesting the disaster was caused by a bomb. Cameron has used cautious language about the causes of the disaster that killed 224 people, but made it clear that UK intelligence pointed to it “more likely than not” being brought down by a bomb. |
| The US Department of Homeland Security is expected to call for tighter security, possibly as soon as Friday, at certain foreign airports that have direct flights to the United States, ABC News reported, citing aviation and government officials. | The US Department of Homeland Security is expected to call for tighter security, possibly as soon as Friday, at certain foreign airports that have direct flights to the United States, ABC News reported, citing aviation and government officials. |
| In addition to those requests, security measures under discussion include better baggage screening at major domestic US airports, potentially including matching luggage to manifest lists before takeoff, the television network said, quoting the officials. | In addition to those requests, security measures under discussion include better baggage screening at major domestic US airports, potentially including matching luggage to manifest lists before takeoff, the television network said, quoting the officials. |
| Ireland, the Netherlands and German airline Lufthansa joined the UK in suspending flights temporarily on Thursday, but travel to the Middle East and Russia appeared to be operating as normal by the evening. | Ireland, the Netherlands and German airline Lufthansa joined the UK in suspending flights temporarily on Thursday, but travel to the Middle East and Russia appeared to be operating as normal by the evening. |
| The cause of the plane crash is a sensitive subject in Russia, as the disaster comes weeks after the Kremlin intervened in the Syrian civil war on the side of president Bashar al-Assad against Islamic State and other rebels. Egypt has also been cautious about attributing a cause, with Sisi dismissing Isis’s claims that it was responsible as “propaganda”. | The cause of the plane crash is a sensitive subject in Russia, as the disaster comes weeks after the Kremlin intervened in the Syrian civil war on the side of president Bashar al-Assad against Islamic State and other rebels. Egypt has also been cautious about attributing a cause, with Sisi dismissing Isis’s claims that it was responsible as “propaganda”. |
| The security alert overshadowed concerns about Cameron’s decision to invite Sisi to London despite the fact that he is a former military chief who seized power after a coup in 2013. The visit was marked by demonstrations outside Downing Street by both his critics and supporters. | The security alert overshadowed concerns about Cameron’s decision to invite Sisi to London despite the fact that he is a former military chief who seized power after a coup in 2013. The visit was marked by demonstrations outside Downing Street by both his critics and supporters. |
| Related: British shutdown of Sharm el-Sheikh flights affects 20,000 citizens | Related: British shutdown of Sharm el-Sheikh flights affects 20,000 citizens |
| Sisi has been pushing for tougher action in London against supporters of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, whose former leader Mohamed Morsi was removed as president during the coup and has now been sentenced to death. | Sisi has been pushing for tougher action in London against supporters of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, whose former leader Mohamed Morsi was removed as president during the coup and has now been sentenced to death. |
| Speaking alongside Sisi, Cameron hinted that his review of the Muslim Brotherhood, which has been long delayed, will take a tougher approach towards the organisation. “In terms of our review of the Muslim Brotherhood, which we discussed today, that will be published later this year, and I think you will see, as you are already seeing in Britain, a much more robust approach against extremism, against extremism of all kinds, and against those extremists who stop just short of endorsing violence,” he said. | Speaking alongside Sisi, Cameron hinted that his review of the Muslim Brotherhood, which has been long delayed, will take a tougher approach towards the organisation. “In terms of our review of the Muslim Brotherhood, which we discussed today, that will be published later this year, and I think you will see, as you are already seeing in Britain, a much more robust approach against extremism, against extremism of all kinds, and against those extremists who stop just short of endorsing violence,” he said. |