Israeli troops on Gaza border |
Intelligence information indicates that both Americans and Israelis are the intended target of a jihadist terror plot, according to informed Middle East security sources with specific knowledge of the plan.
On Saturday, Israel instructed border personnel not to allow Israelis to pass through the Taba border crossing into the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula. The crossing connects the Sinai with the Israeli port city of Eilat.
The closure marks the first time the border has been shut down since it was first opened to Israel in 1982.
The Israeli media reported the decision to shut the border crossing was made after the Jewish state received serious and targeted threats from terror organizations planning to perpetrate attacks against Israelis in the Sinai, particularly near Taba.
Security sources familiar with the threats told WND there were also threats against Americans in the Sinai as part of the planned jihadist attacks. The sources did not have more specific information on the U.S.-related threat.
The Taba border crossing was re-opened Sunday on a limited basis. Israel is still instructing its citizens not to enter the Sinai.
Meanwhile, assailants yesterday again bombed an Egyptian pipeline in Sinai that supplies Israel and Jordan with gas. This is the sixth time the pipeline has been bombed since the downfall of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Sinai's border with Israel has been a hot zone of recent jihadist activity.
Last month, terrorists infiltrated into Israel and carried out a series of coordinated attacks against Israeli motorists and security forces.
One week prior to the attacks, WND reported that Israel stopped what would have been a spectacular border terrorist attack planned from inside the Gaza Strip, according to the same Egyptian security officials.