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UK investigators looking at what caused a Russian airliner to crash in Egypt believe a bomb was put in the hold prior to take-off, the BBC has learned.

The UK government suspended all flights to and from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh two days ago.

The move came after it decided the incident was likely to be have been caused by terrorism.

It had received intelligence based on intercepted communications between militants in the Sinai Peninsula.

Britons stranded in Sharm el-Sheikh since then are due to begin returning home, but will only be allowed to bring hand luggage.
The Metrojet Airbus A321 fell from the sky last Saturday, killing all 224 people on board.

It was flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg when it came down in Sinai. Most of the victims were Russian.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says that although British officials have not ruled out the possibility of a technical fault bringing the plane down, they think that is increasingly unlikely.

Investigators in the UK's security service suspect someone with access to the aircraft's baggage compartment inserted an explosive device inside or on top of the luggage just before the plane took off, he adds.

Sinai-based militants linked to the Islamic State (IS) group have claimed they destroyed the plane. IS has called for a war against both Russia and the US over their air strikes in Syria.

US President Barack Obama told a CBS radio station on Thursday that he thought there was "a possibility" that there was a bomb on the downed jet.

”We're taking that very seriously," he said.

However, both Egypt and Russia have said it is too early to draw conclusions.