Sharm el-Sheikh (archives)
Photo: Reuters
Report: Egypt arrests men who planned Sharm terror attacks
London-based Arabic newspaper says Sinai Bedouins apprehended three men in vehicle containing bomb-making equipment a few days before rocket attack on Eilat
Five days prior to last week's rocket attack on Eilat and the Jordanian port city of Aqaba, three people were arrested in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula for allegedly planning to carry out terror attacks in Sharm el-Sheikh, the London-based Arabic newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat reported Sunday.
The three were detained while travelling in a vehicle containing bomb-making equipment and explosives, the report said.
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According to the report, the terrorists were apprehended by Bedouins who work in the tourism industry and then transferred to the custody of Egyptian security forces.
The Bedouins claim the detainees are linked to the rocket attack, but Egyptian security officials have ruled out this possibility.
A large amount of gunpowder was found in the vehicle, as was another substance used to make explosive devices, the report said.
"Authorities questioned the suspects regarding their connection to those who fired the rockets on Eilat and Aqaba," an Egyptian official was quoted as saying.
It was further reported that the suspects were not carrying any identification at the time of their arrest.
"A number of people have been arrested for suspicion of having ties to terror organizations. They are not connected to the rocket fire," another Egyptian official was quoted as saying.
"We do not believe the rocket fire originated in Sinai," he said.
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