A day after two church bombings in Egypt left more than 40 people dead, Israel has moved to close its border crossing with the North African country.
The move comes following a warning by its anti-terrorism office of an “imminent” militant attack there.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in a statement said its citizens will not be allowed to cross into Egypt through the Taba border crossing. Those returning to Israel via the crossing will be however allowed in.
The statement attributed the move to the “burgeoning activities” of Islamic State militants in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, which is a tourist attraction for Israeli tourists. It adds that with the Islamic State group losing ground in Iraq and Syria, there is renewed “motivation to carry out terror attacks in different arenas at this time.”
Soon after the announcement, sirens wailed in parts of southern Israel alerting residents to a rocket attack. The military said a rocket fired from Sinai exploded in an open field, causing no injuries, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Egyptian authorities have not commented on the move.
The two church bombings left 40 people dead and scores other injured an attack that has been claimed by the Islamic State.
Egyptian authorities declared a three-month state of emergency in the wake of the attacks, which drew a storm of condemnations across the Muslim-majority country.
