Khaberni - According to "Israel Hayom" newspaper, Egypt's increase of the crossing fees at the Taba border point for Israelis to $120 has caused widespread anger among Israelis who rely on the crossing for traveling abroad.
The Hebrew newspaper added in its report published this Saturday morning that Israelis turned the Taba airport into an alternative to Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv after the Israeli airspace closure following the operation "Shagat Ha'ari" – the Hebrew name for the Iran war –, which led tens of thousands to cross the land borders through Jordan and Egypt to reach their international flights.
The Hebrew newspaper pointed out that the new increase in fees represents double the previous price, which had been raised just two months ago, making the crossing cost for a family of four exceed $480, not to mention the vehicle crossing fees that also jumped to record levels.
The newspaper stated that this Egyptian decision comes at a time when Israeli tourists and travelers rely on the Taba crossing as a quick transit point without overnight stays in Sinai or visiting areas inside Egypt, which prompted the Egyptian authorities to raise the fees to compensate for the loss of direct tourism revenues.
The newspaper added that Israeli users on social media platforms expressed their dissatisfaction with the decision, considering that Egypt is exploiting the war conditions and the airspace closure to impose hefty fees on Israeli travelers who do not have easy alternative options.
The newspaper reported that Israeli tourism companies have started warning their clients about the increasing costs of trips through the land crossings, while some government officials have called for opening a dialogue with Cairo to alleviate the burden on travelers.
Last week, the Israeli channel "i24NEWS" reported that the Egyptian authorities had suddenly announced a very sharp increase in the crossing price at the Taba checkpoint, from $25 per traveler to $60, noting that this decision comes at a very sensitive time.
Following the increase in the border crossing price at the "Taba checkpoint" last week, a number of Israelis launched a boycott campaign for the crossing, and a state of anger emerged in Israeli social media, leading to calls to boycott Egypt which began to spread, and a number of travelers submitted complaints to the Ministry of Tourism and the Israeli Crossing Authority.
This comes at a time when the Sinai Peninsula is experiencing a wave of reverse migration from Israel to European countries and the United States through the "Taba crossing" to escape Iranian rockets.
Hebrew media reported that a large number of Israelis chose the route on their way to Europe or the United States via Sinai through the Begin (Taba) crossing.
It noted that due to changes in Israel's flight schedules, thousands of travelers, from families to foreign students, choose to cross the border at Taba and continue their journey from there with connecting flights.
