Egypt moved to bolster security in the Sinai and the Muslim Brotherhood called for a review of military limits in the area under the country’s peace agreement with Israel, after 16 soldiers were killed by militants.
The Brotherhood said the Aug. 5 attack, which posed one of the most serious tests for President Mohamed Mursi since taking office, was aimed at driving a wedge between Egypt and the Hamas government in Gaza while also discrediting the newly appointed government of Prime Minister Hisham Qandil -- the first Cabinet to be named after Mursi assumed office in June.
The bloodshed compounds a growing list of security challenges in the country. It also placed Mursi, who was nominated by the Brotherhood for the presidency, in the difficult position of dealing with two of the thorniest issues in Egyptian foreign policy -- the push for closer ties with Hamas and relations with Israel.
The attack “draws our attention to the fact that our forces in the Sinai lack the personnel and the equipment to protect the region or guard our borders, which makes it imperative to review the terms of our accords with Israel,” the Brotherhood said in a statement posted today on the website of its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party.
[h=2]Peace Deal[/h]The 1978 peace accord between Egypt and Israel limits the number of troops Egypt can deploy in the peninsula. Mursi, who has repeatedly said that Egypt will honor its international agreements, ordered the military to take “complete control” of the region and send in helicopter gunships.
Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., Israel and the European Union, denied any involvement and condemned the attack. No group has claimed responsibility.
The military blamed the attack on “enemies of the state,” and said the assailants may have been supported by “elements” in Gaza who shelled the border crossing of Karam Abu Salem at the same time. The attack came after Mursi met with senior Hamas officials in Cairo last month to discuss easing border controls with the Palestinian territory.
The Brotherhood, which said in its statement that Israel had issued instructions to its citizens days before to leave the Sinai, said the incident “may well be the work of Israel’s Mossad.”
The army was patrolling the area by land, sea and air today, the independent Al Shorouk newspaper said. Authorities were also demolishing smuggling tunnels used to ferry supplies to Gaza, it reported.
[h=2]Charred Bodies[/h]The charred bodies of six of the attackers arrived at hospital in Arish, the state-run Ahram Gate website said today. They were killed by Israeli forces after trying to break through the border, officials said.
The Sinai attack may further undermine Mursi’s authority, according to Hani Sabra, Middle East analyst with the Eurasia Group. The president has been locked in a struggle with the military council that handed over power to him in June after stripping his office of some of its authority while expropriating new powers for themselves.
“Matters of national security and strategic importance remain the Egyptian military’s brief,” Sabra said in an e- mailed note. “This incident will strengthen the military’s hand domestically as it steps in to assume more responsibilities for a government headed by novices that appear unprepared to respond to Egypt’s challenges.”
[h=2]Lawless Area[/h]The assault, which the military said involved 35 people, took place near the Rafah border crossing with Gaza. The region has grown increasingly lawless since Hosni Mubarak’s ouster in February 2011. Last August, gunmen operating out of Sinai killed eight Israelis and injured about 40 people near the southern Israeli city of Eilat. A natural gas pipeline feeding into Israel and Jordan has been attacked 15 times since Mubarak’s fall.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton raised the security situation in the Sinai during her trip to Cairo in July. Israel has repeatedly challenged the Mursi’s willingness and ability to secure a largely desolate peninsula whose southern half and coastlines are tourist attractions.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in an e-mailed statement that the attackers had suicide-bomber vests and that, along with the amount of explosives brought in a small truck at the start of the incursion, the attack “could have caused very serious damage.”
[h=2]‘Wakeup Call’[/h]“I hope this will be a wakeup call for Egypt regarding the necessity to be sharp and efficient on their side,” Barak said while touring the border region.
Mursi’s election raised concerns in Israel, which enjoyed peace with Egypt under Mubarak. The ousted president was seen as Israel’s greatest ally in the region, cooperating on security and the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
“He has to have a clear policy toward Israel,” said Khalil al-Anani, an expert on Islamist movements at the U.K.’s Durham University. “The borders are not unilateral, but are between Egypt and Israel and, therefore, one way or another, he has to reach out to Israelis.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Tarek El-Tablawy in Cairo at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at [email protected]
The Brotherhood said the Aug. 5 attack, which posed one of the most serious tests for President Mohamed Mursi since taking office, was aimed at driving a wedge between Egypt and the Hamas government in Gaza while also discrediting the newly appointed government of Prime Minister Hisham Qandil -- the first Cabinet to be named after Mursi assumed office in June.
The bloodshed compounds a growing list of security challenges in the country. It also placed Mursi, who was nominated by the Brotherhood for the presidency, in the difficult position of dealing with two of the thorniest issues in Egyptian foreign policy -- the push for closer ties with Hamas and relations with Israel.
The attack “draws our attention to the fact that our forces in the Sinai lack the personnel and the equipment to protect the region or guard our borders, which makes it imperative to review the terms of our accords with Israel,” the Brotherhood said in a statement posted today on the website of its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party.
[h=2]Peace Deal[/h]The 1978 peace accord between Egypt and Israel limits the number of troops Egypt can deploy in the peninsula. Mursi, who has repeatedly said that Egypt will honor its international agreements, ordered the military to take “complete control” of the region and send in helicopter gunships.
Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., Israel and the European Union, denied any involvement and condemned the attack. No group has claimed responsibility.
The military blamed the attack on “enemies of the state,” and said the assailants may have been supported by “elements” in Gaza who shelled the border crossing of Karam Abu Salem at the same time. The attack came after Mursi met with senior Hamas officials in Cairo last month to discuss easing border controls with the Palestinian territory.
The Brotherhood, which said in its statement that Israel had issued instructions to its citizens days before to leave the Sinai, said the incident “may well be the work of Israel’s Mossad.”
The army was patrolling the area by land, sea and air today, the independent Al Shorouk newspaper said. Authorities were also demolishing smuggling tunnels used to ferry supplies to Gaza, it reported.
[h=2]Charred Bodies[/h]The charred bodies of six of the attackers arrived at hospital in Arish, the state-run Ahram Gate website said today. They were killed by Israeli forces after trying to break through the border, officials said.
The Sinai attack may further undermine Mursi’s authority, according to Hani Sabra, Middle East analyst with the Eurasia Group. The president has been locked in a struggle with the military council that handed over power to him in June after stripping his office of some of its authority while expropriating new powers for themselves.
“Matters of national security and strategic importance remain the Egyptian military’s brief,” Sabra said in an e- mailed note. “This incident will strengthen the military’s hand domestically as it steps in to assume more responsibilities for a government headed by novices that appear unprepared to respond to Egypt’s challenges.”
[h=2]Lawless Area[/h]The assault, which the military said involved 35 people, took place near the Rafah border crossing with Gaza. The region has grown increasingly lawless since Hosni Mubarak’s ouster in February 2011. Last August, gunmen operating out of Sinai killed eight Israelis and injured about 40 people near the southern Israeli city of Eilat. A natural gas pipeline feeding into Israel and Jordan has been attacked 15 times since Mubarak’s fall.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton raised the security situation in the Sinai during her trip to Cairo in July. Israel has repeatedly challenged the Mursi’s willingness and ability to secure a largely desolate peninsula whose southern half and coastlines are tourist attractions.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in an e-mailed statement that the attackers had suicide-bomber vests and that, along with the amount of explosives brought in a small truck at the start of the incursion, the attack “could have caused very serious damage.”
[h=2]‘Wakeup Call’[/h]“I hope this will be a wakeup call for Egypt regarding the necessity to be sharp and efficient on their side,” Barak said while touring the border region.
Mursi’s election raised concerns in Israel, which enjoyed peace with Egypt under Mubarak. The ousted president was seen as Israel’s greatest ally in the region, cooperating on security and the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
“He has to have a clear policy toward Israel,” said Khalil al-Anani, an expert on Islamist movements at the U.K.’s Durham University. “The borders are not unilateral, but are between Egypt and Israel and, therefore, one way or another, he has to reach out to Israelis.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Tarek El-Tablawy in Cairo at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew J. Barden at [email protected]