The Israeli authorities closed Taba crossing with Egypt on Monday and ordered all Israeli tourists in Sinai Peninsula to leave immediately as rocket alert sirens were activated in Eshkol settlement near the border with Sinai.
Media outlets reported that a rocket was fired from Sinai towards Eshkol settlement which is not far from the eastern borders of Gaza Strip.
According to al-Jazeera TV channel the Israeli security agencies said that the armed groups in Sinai especially those affiliated with the Islamic State are preparing to expand and escalate their operations in Sinai which is packed with tourist resorts frequented by Israelis.
Al-Jazeera said quoting its correspondent that the closure of the Taba crossing was according to a decision by the Israeli minister of transport and the intelligence apparatus to speed up the return of the Israeli tourists in Sinai. The crossing will remain closed until the end of the Passover Feast after nearly a week.
These developments followed the bombings carried out by the Islamic State extremist group in two churches in Egypt on Sunday amid the presence of indicators confirming the Islamic State’s intention to escalate its operations in the region.
