JERUSALEM — Israel has warned its nationals to stay away from Egypt
and Jordan over the next few weeks.
Officials said the Israeli intelligence community has determined that
Islamic insurgency groups were planning to attack Israelis in several Arab
countries. They said the attacks would most likely take place in Egypt and
Jordan. In early April, three Westerners were killed in a suicide bombing in
Cairo.
"Even though these are just recommendations, every traveler should check
the meanings of these risks carefully and avoid putting himself or those
close to him in unnecessary danger," the prime minister's Counter-terrorist
Staff said in a statement.
Officials said Islamic insurgency groups were seeking to repeat the
multiple bombings in October 2004 in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. In two
bombings against
Israeli tourist spots, 34 people were killed, most of them Egyptian
nationals.
The counter-terrorism unit also urged Israelis to exercise "alertness
and general caution" when visiting the Philippines, Thailand and Turkey. An
alert has also been in effect for Arab states as well as Kenya, Malaysia,
Nigeria and Pakistan.
"All Arab countries except Mauritania are included in the travel warning
list and it is recommended not to visit, or stay in, any of them," the
travel advisory said.
Afghanistan and Iran were said to have a "very high threat level," the
warning said. Other areas in this category included India's Kashmir,
Russia's Chechnya and the Mindanao island in the Philippines.
Arab countries with a high threat level were identified as Egypt, Jordan,
Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Indonesia,
Kenya, Malaysia and Pakistan were also on the list of countries that
contained a high threat level.
The advisory said "a basic threat level" exists in the Comoros Islands,
Kuwait, Libya, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Algeria, Bahrain,
Djibouti, Qatar — excluding Doha — Morocco and Tunisia, were deemed to
contain a "concrete threat level." In March, Doha was rocked by a suicide
car bombing that targeted a British theater.
