British tourists fly out of Egypt

EasyJet travel ban causes confusion.

Flights carrying British tourists began leaving Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh again on 6 November in the wake of the Russian plane crash in which all 224 passengers were killed.

Britain's earlier decision to ground flights from the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh generated a backlash from Egypt and Russia after the British prime minister, David Cameron, said that a bomb had probably brought down the Russian plane in Egypt's Sinai province on 31 October.

The lifting of the UK travel ban coincided with a statement from the low-cost British airline easyJet which suspended flights on 5 November because of the uncertain security situation.

Two easyJet flights took off from the Egyptian resort on route for the UK airports Gatwick and Luton on 6 November but the company has said that it understands another eight flights will not be allowed to operate. One easyJet flight to Milan's Malpensa has also been suspended, according to the company's website.

There are an estimated 20,000 British tourists in Egypt's Red Sea region but those returning to the UK are currently permitted to carry hand luggage only. Outbound passenger flights to Sharm al-Sheikh remain suspended.

The downing of the Russian plane has been claimed by Sinai Province, the Egyptian militant group aligned to Isis (Islamic State).

Egypt continues to deny there is any evidence to support there was a bomb on board the plane. Russia, which launched air strikes against Islamist fighters in Syria in early October, has said it was premature to conclude that the flight was attacked.

Egypt's president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was on a visit to London on 5 November when the British prime minister made his announcement of a possible bomb attack on the Russian plane.