Report: Eilat Airport shut down due to Sinai rocket threat
Palestinian news agency Maan reports Israel shut southern airport on Thursday due to Egyptian intel of Sinai militant groups with anti-aircraft rockets
The report said that Egyptian intelligence services acquired information that the Sinai groups are in possession of ground-air rockets and intend to attack strategic facilities in Sinai during the Eid al-Fieter holiday.
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- Sinai jihadists have Eilat in sights
- IDF closes Eilat airport for 2 hours over security concerns
- Egyptian army says destroyed 102 Gaza tunnels
In addition, the report said that Egyptian fighter jets routinely circle over Sinai to thwart possible attempts to launch rockets and attack in Sinai and the Negev.
The Eilat Airport was closed on Thursday after an IDF situation assessment. Initially it was reported that the IDF instructed the airspace shut down for arrivals and allow departing airplanes, but the airport was soon shut down completely.
The airspace over Eilat was reopened two hours later by Chief of Staff Benny Gantz's order.
Across the border, the Egyptain army continues to hunt down militants in the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt's army spokesperson, Ahmad Ali, recently stated that during an operation last month 103 militants were captured and 60 killed in Sinai.
The statement noted that the army destroyed 102 tunnels on the Sinai-Gaza border and demolished 40 fuel silos. In addition, some militants' vehicles were confiscated.
Last month the IDF deployed an Iron Dome battery in Eilat. The battery was deployed at the height of the tourist season for fear the city would become the target of rocket fire. The IDF has arranged that the city's siren system be connected to the alert systems installed on the Israel-Egypt border, so that rockets launched toward the city will trigger the siren system.
Iron Dome in Eilat (Photo: Meir Ohayon)
Last week the world was alerted to the possibility of an al Qaeda coordinated attack, and the US shut down many of its worldwide embassies, including the one in Tel Aviv.
According to reports, the reason for the alert was a conference call held by al Qaeda leaders from across the globe.
According to the Daily Beast website, militant leaders from Sinai also participated in the call, leading to the closure of the US Tel Aviv embassy on Sunday.
An American official told the Daily Beast that "They proved they can fire on Eilat, and it's not beyond their ability to hit Tel Aviv."
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