Russia: Shocking British Had Intelligence on Sinai Plane and Didn’t Share It

Egypt Officials Reject Notion That Plane Was Bombed

The weekend downing of a Russian Metrojet plane, killing 224 people on board over the Sinai Peninsula, has been increasingly suggested to have been a bombing attack by the local ISIS affiliate. The US and British governments have both claimed some intelligence to that effect, with British PM David Cameron saying a bombing was a “strong possibility.”

Russia is so far not accepting the story, but the Foreign Ministry is complaining about Britain not giving them access to any of the intelligence they say they have on the plane, saying it is “shocking” that they say they have information but don’t want to share it.

Russian officials have tried to avoid accepting ISIS claims of responsibility so far, saying they are looking into many possibilities, but it is the Egyptian junta that’s really pushed back at the suggestion, accusing the whole allegation of being “ISIS propaganda” and insisting they are confident that security in the Sinai Peninsula is too strong for a bombing.

For Egypt, much of the backlash is likely out of fear of damage to the tourism industry, which is extremely important at the resort of Sharm el-Sheik, from where the plane took off. Several nations, including Britain, have halted flights out of the peninsula in recent days.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.