TABA, Egypt — Media outlets across Israel echoed warnings Jan. 24 urging citizens vacationing in the Sinai to leave the peninsula immediately. Reports claimed that Israeli intelligence officials had unearthed a very high and concrete threat to Israeli nationals there and raised the risk of danger to the highest level. Less than an hour south of Eilat, however, on a beach near the town of Nuweiba, a group of Israeli youngsters continued chatting in Hebrew to their Bedouin hosts while relaxing at a camp on the stunning Sinai coast on the Red Sea's Gulf of Aqaba.

“It is my first time here in Sinai, but a lot of my friends have come here before,” said Aaron Avitsur, a 21-year-old from Jerusalem. “Everyone in Israel knows that Sinai has great beaches and allows a freer time than in Israel.”

Avitsur further stated, “People come here because they want to find something different than what they are used to. For me, I think it is the peace and quiet and the way that the stars shine at night. After all, everybody wants some quiet in their lives sometimes.”

When asked about the possible dangers of visiting the Sinai, Avitsur pauses before looking at the seascape, and responding, “I feel safe here. After all, Israel is dangerous too, so it is no different for me.”