The Department of Foreign Affairs is advising against all non-essential travel to Egypt, and is continuing to monitor the situation.

170 Irish citizens are currently registered as being in Egypt, but as registration isn't compulsory, the figure may not reflect the total number of Irish people living in or visiting there.

It comes after US Intelligence and the British Government say a bomb may have brought down a plane in the Sinai desert last Saturday, killing all 224 people on board.

Irish airlines have been told not to fly in or out of Sharm el Sheikh Airport.