Security officials fear Sinai heaven could turn into terror hell
Photo: AP
Security officials urge Israelis to leave Sinai
Counter Terrorism Bureau warns of plans to abduct Israelis vacationing in Egypt
Israelis in Egypt face heightened terror threat: The Counter Terrorism Bureau Thursday evening called on Israelis vacationing in the Sinai to return immediately following growing terror threats in light of the breached Gaza-Egypt border.
"Recently, terror threats in the Sinai were greatly aggravated," the announcement said. "The currently breached border between the Gaza Strip and the Sinai makes it easier for terror activists to move out of the Gaza Strip and back in. For a while now, there have been substantial threats to the safety of Israelis visiting or staying across Egypt."
A statement published by the Bureau characterized the threat level as "high and concrete" and warned that terror elements currently in the Sinai are seeking to abduct Israelis and transfer them into the Gaza Strip.
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Meanwhile, Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter instructed senior police officials to boost their alert level in order to prevent infiltrators from entering Israel through the Egyptian border, as a result of the "great tide of Palestinians who left Gaza to Rafah and the Sinai."
Officials: Terror cells could exploit border breach
Dichter warned that security officials were dealing with terror alerts regarding the possibility that terrorist may try to take advantage of their ability to leave Gaza in order to enter Israel through the Sinai. The minister reminded senior police officials of the terror attack in the southern town of Eilat about a year ago.In that attack, a suicide bomber killed three Israelis after he was able to leave Gaza and enter Eilat via Egypt.
Defense officials in Israel are concerned that terror cells could exploit the breach on the Philadelphi route in order infiltrate the Negev or in order to abduct Israelis from the Sinai and transfer them to the Gaza Strip.
Officials estimate that terror organizations seek to carry out a prominent attack in light of the growing conflict over the ongoing Gaza Strip siege.
