IS Top Member Killed

A senior member of the Islamic State jihadist group in Egypt Ashraf Ali Hassanein al-Gharabli, was killed in a gun battle in Cairo after police tried to apprehend him according to new report.

The IS group’s branch in the Sinai claimed responsibility after the Russian plane crash.

IS said it downed the plane in retaliation for Russian air strikes in Syria, but has not said how.

The IS affiliate in Egypt is waging a bloody insurgency in north Sinai that has killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of foreign tourists, including some 80,000 Russians and 20,000 Britons, were stranded in Egypt after flights were cancelled over security fears.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday suspended all flights to Egypt.

Moscow said Monday that about 25,000 Russian tourists had so far returned on more than 100 flights, while London said some 5,000 Britons had returned home.

Hammond said he hoped flights to Sharm could resume soon, once “robust” security arrangements are in place.

Flight numbers have been limited because both Russia and Britain have banned tourists from bringing their check-in luggage, which will be flown home separately.

That restriction has prompted Egypt to limit the number of daily repatriation flights because it says there is only so much baggage its airports can accommodate.

The crash has led to calls for greater security at airports in regions near where jihadists operate.

It has also raised fears for Egypt‘s vital tourism industry, which had already been suffering from years of unrest.

Local tourism chiefs insist, however, that Sharm is secure.

“Sharm is safe. There is no problem inside Sharm el-Sheikh,” said Givara el-Gafy, head of the south Sinai tourism chamber.

Ashraf Ali Ali Hassanein al-Gharabli is believed to have been implicated in the murders of a Croat and an American