Sinai insurgency
The Sinai insurgency was an insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, launched by Islamist militants against Egyptian security forces, which have also included attacks on civilians.[40] The insurgency began during the Egyptian Crisis, during which the longtime Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in the 2011 Egyptian revolution.[41]
The insurgency initially consisted of militants, largely composed of local Bedouin tribesmen, who exploited the chaotic situation in Egypt and weakened central authority to launch a series of attacks on government forces in Sinai. In 2014, elements of the Ansar Bait al-Maqdis group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, or ISIS) and proclaimed themselves Sinai Province, with some security officials stating that militants based in Libya established ties with the Sinai Province group[42] and blaming the porous border and ongoing civil war for the increase in sophisticated weapons available to the Islamist groups.[43]
Egyptian authorities attempted to restore their presence in the Sinai through both political and military measures.[44] The country launched two military operations, known as Operation Eagle in mid-2011 and Operation Sinai in mid-2012. In May 2013, following an abduction of Egyptian officers, violence in the Sinai surged once again. Following the overthrow in July 2013 of Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, "unprecedented clashes" occurred.[45]
The fallout suffered by locals as a result of the insurgency ranges from militant operations and a state of insecurity to extensive military operations and the demolishing of hundreds of homes, leading to the evacuation of thousands of residents as Egyptian troops pressed on to build a buffer zone meant to halt the smuggling of weapons and militants from and to the Gaza Strip. A report, compiled by a delegation from the state-funded National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), stated that most of the displaced families share the same grievances of palpable government negligence, unavailability of nearby schools, and a lack of health services.[46] Since the start of the conflict, dozens of civilians were killed, either in military operations or kidnapped and then beheaded by militants. In November 2017, more than 300 Sufist worshippers were killed and over 100 injured in a terrorist attack on a mosque west of the city of Al-Arish.[40]
Background[edit]
Sufism was previously dominant in the region before militant jihadi ideas began to take hold.[47] The Sinai Peninsula has long been known for its lawlessness, historically, it has served as a route for the smuggling of weapons and supplies. Security provisions in the Egypt–Israel peace treaty of 1979 have mandated a diminished security presence in the area, enabling militants to operate with a freer hand. Moreover, the limited government-directed investment and development in Sinai has discriminated against the local Bedouin population, a population that values tribal allegiance over all else. The combination of Sinai's harsh terrain and its lack of resources have kept the area poor and hence, it is ripe for militancy.[48]
Following the January 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak's regime, the country became increasingly destabilized, creating a security vacuum in the Sinai Peninsula. Radical Islamic elements in Sinai exploited the opportunity, using the region's unique environment, they launched several waves of attacks against Egyptian military and commercial facilities.
According to The Economist, the conflict also involves local armed Bedouins "who have long-standing grievances against the central government in Cairo" and that "they are barred from joining the army or police; they find it hard to get jobs in tourism; and they complain that many of their lands have been taken from them".[9]
Aftermath (2023–present)[edit]
On 29 January 2023, three children were killed by the explosion of a leftover mine.[168]
On 27 February 2023, unknown gunmen attacked, killed, and wounded three members of the Egyptian army in South Sinai.[169]
On 2 June 2023, a soldier of the Egyptian Central Security Forces crossed over the Egypt–Israel border into Israeli territory, shooting three Israeli soldiers dead and injuring two others, before he was killed in a shootout with the IDF.[170][171]
On 30 July, one Egyptian police colonel and two police officers were killed in North Sinai.[172][173][174]
On 31 July, at least four police officers were killed and 22 injured in clashes inside the police compound in Arish.[175][176]
On 17 September, seven Egyptian army soldiers, including two majors and a lieutenant colonel, were killed in an IED explosion in Northern Sinai.[177]
On 16 January 2024, around twenty Egyptian armed men stormed into Israel and started clashing with IDF soldiers. According to the Egyptian army, it was an attempt to smuggle drugs, and they foiled it. The IDF said that one IDF soldier was injured.
Egyptian government's response[edit]
Military tactics[edit]
The disposition of Egyptian forces in the Sinai peninsula is mandated by the Camp David Accords and it is monitored by the 1,600 foreign troops who make up the Multinational Force and Observers. Egypt is only permitted to station enough military forces to enforce security in the Sinai.[191]
In 2011, Egypt sent an additional 2,500 troops and 250 armored personnel, with helicopters as part of Operation Eagle, a mission to provide security during the transition to power from the then-recently fallen Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.[192] Operation Eagle was joined by Operation Sinai in 2012, which came in response to a militant attack against an Egyptian border post 5 August that killed 16 border guards. Together, the two operations increased the total troop count by more than 2,500 added 80 vehicles and at least two attack helicopters. Egypt also was allowed to deploy armed fighter jets to El Arish to assist its ground forces in Sinai.[192][193]
Egypt's expanded force structure in Sinai is designed to deny militants sanctuary by bringing more force to bear than the municipal police can provide. Many of the new forces are stationed in the northeast of the Sinai along the Egyptian border with Gaza. They set up roadblocks and checkpoints in an attempt to monitor traffic and counter smuggling on the Sinai Peninsula.[192]
In the October 2014 attacks, the militants in Sinai used suicide truck bombs to breach army roadblocks and strongpoints for the first time, they immediately followed these attacks by launching an infantry attack.
After the October attacks, the Egyptian military began using armed drones for the first time since the Sinai insurgency began.[194] And as a measure to counter weapon and militant trafficking between Egypt and Gaza strip, the Egyptian government announced the creation of a buffer zone along the Egypt-Gaza border.[195]
Following the attacks on army and police bases in Arish in early 2015, the Egyptian President issued a decree to create a unified military command for the east of the Suez Canal to combat terrorism. Led by General Osama Roshdy Askar, it was to guide counter-terrorism activities of the Second and Third Armies.[196]
On 27 April 2015, Egypt's Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab issued a decree ordering the isolation and evacuation of new areas in North Sinai's Rafah city, thus expanding the buffer zone.[197]
A shift in the militants strategy appeared in the July 2015 clashes. Zack Gold, Middle East analyst, views the battle as a change in strategy from hit and run tactics toward an ISIL-like 'holding' of territory.[198]
As an effort to limit car-bombs attacks, Egypt's Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab issued a decree banning 4X4 vehicles in army-operations zones in Sinai.[199]
Following the mosque attack in November 2017, President el-Sisi vowed to respond with "the utmost force" and Egyptian authorities in the days immediately after the attack the Air Force claimed to have the pursued and destroyed of some of the militants' vehicles and weapons stocks.[200] Airstrikes were also conducted in the neighboring mountains.[201] In February 2018, the Egyptian military conducted major air strikes and land assaults against terrorist positions in Sinai.[202]
Egyptian forces occupied 37 schools and turned them into military bases. After the government took over the school, it failed to properly relocate the children. Students were denied access to education, and illiteracy levels increased. Besides, clashes between the army and armed groups destroyed 59 schools, three of which were attacked or destroyed by militants.[203]
Alleged Israeli involvement[edit]
Extensive smuggling of migrants (mostly from African countries), drugs and contraband from Sinai into Israel, as well as kidnapping of migrants crossing the Sinai en route from Africa to Israel were commonplace in the past, serving as an important source of income for insurgent groups in the Sinai. The crisis in Egypt resulted in a rise in illicit and insurgent activities across the Egypt–Israel border, prompting Israel to construct the Egypt–Israel barrier, completed in 2013. This had the effect of practically eliminating illegal migrant crossing into Israel and significantly reducing cross-border insurgency and drug smuggling.[205]
On 16 October 2017, the Islamic State announced that it had fired rockets at Eshkol region in Israel, in response to 'Jewish aircraft' assisting Egyptian security forces.[206]
On 23 May 2018, the Islamic State released a video claiming that Israeli aircraft struck civilian homes in the Sinai and showed Hebrew labels on munitions purportedly found in aftermath of the attack.[207]
As of 3 February 2018, The New York Times wrote that the Israeli Defence Forces had conducted over 100 air strikes in Sinai,[1] which elicited an official denial from the Egyptian military.[208]
Reactions[edit]
Israel[edit]
In the two years following 2011, Israel approved two Egyptian military increases in the Sinai Peninsula above levels set in the Camp David Accords, which mandates that the Sinai must remain demilitarized, with only enough forces in Sinai to enforce security.[192][193][209] Israel did so because it is not in its interest to have unrest in Sinai, whether political protests or militant violence.[192]
However, in late 2012, concern began to be raised as Egypt began deploying more force and tanks without coordination from Israel. On 21 August, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that it is important for Israel to make sure that the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty is upheld, and not to remain silent as Egyptian military forces enter the Sinai. Concern was raised by Israeli officials over Egyptian failure to notify Israel about the deployment of tanks in the Sinai, which violates the peace treaty. Lieberman said, "We must make sure that every detail is upheld, otherwise we'll find ourselves in a slippery slope as far as the peace treaty is concerned."[210]
On the same day, Israeli daily Maariv reported that Israel sent a message to Egypt via the White House, protesting Egypt's ongoing increase in military presence in the Sinai without coordination from Israel, and telling Egypt that it must remove tanks from the Sinai because their presence violates the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty of 1979, which states that Sinai Peninsula is to remain demilitarized. The Maariv report was echoed by an article in The New York Times, which stated that Israel was "troubled" by the entry of Egyptian tanks into the northern Sinai Peninsula without coordination with Israel and had asked Egypt to withdraw them.[211] Partly due to Egypt's military deploying tanks in the Sinai Peninsula, Israel is increasingly worried about what has long been their most critical regional relationship.[212] The lack of coordination around their deployment is seen as potentially undermining a peace treaty that has been a cornerstone of Israel's security for decades according to The New York Times.[212] Israel is also concerned that Egypt may use Operation Eagle to build up its military presence in the Sinai, and leave the tanks and armored carriers in the Sinai while not doing much more than symbolic action to eliminate the terrorist threat.[213]
Israel has not issued a formal complaint, and instead prefers to resolve the issue through quiet contacts, as well as mediation from the U.S., to avoid straining its relationship with Egypt.[214]
On 24 August 2012, a senior Egyptian military source said that Egyptian Defense Minister Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak have reached an agreement on the issue of the militarization of the Sinai. Al Hayat reported that Sissi phoned Barak and said that Egypt was committed to maintaining the peace treaty with Israel.[215] Sissi also said that the militarization was temporary, and was needed for security and to fight terrorism. However, an Israeli defense official denied that such a conversation took place.[216]
In late August 2012, Morsi said that the security operations do not threaten anyone, and "there should not be any kind of international or regional concerns at all from the presence of Egyptian security forces". Morsi added that the campaign was in "full respect to international treaties. The Egyptian-Israeli peace deal places limits on Egyptian military deployment in the Sinai. Officials in Israel were concerned about Egypt building up heavy armour in Sinai."[217]
On 8 September 2012, an Israeli official confirmed that coordination exists between Israel and Egypt regarding Operation Eagle. Egyptian Military spokesman Ahmed Mohammed Ali had earlier announced that Egypt has been consulting with Israel regarding its security measures in the Sinai.[218]
On 2 July 2015, one day after the attacks on 15[219] Egyptian Army checkpoints, Israel announced that it was giving Egypt a "free hand to operate in northern Sinai against local jihadist groups, voluntarily ignoring an annex to the 1979 Camp David Peace Accords banning the presence of significant Egyptian forces in the area."[220][221]
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent condolences to Egypt for the terrorist attacks that rocked that country on 1 July. He further stated that "we are together with Egypt and many other states in the Middle East and the world in the struggle against extreme Islamic terrorism."[222]
As of 3 February 2018, The New York Times had claimed that Israel has conducted over a 100 air strikes in Sinai,[1] which has been denied by the Egyptian Military spokesman, Col. Tamer a-Rifai.[223]
On 8 November 2021, after a meeting between Egyptian and Israeli military commanders in Sinai, Israel agreed to a larger deployment of Egyptian troops near Rafah. The exact level of the troop increase was not immediately announced.[224][225]
United States[edit]
According to CNN, in a move to increase security in the Sinai, help Morsi, and reassure Israel, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta offered Egypt classified intelligence-sharing capabilities to help Egypt identify military threats in the area, which he discussed during his recent trips to Egypt and Israel. The technology has been widely used in Iraq and Afghanistan to identify vehicles at great distances. The technology may also be used by the Multinational Force and Observers in Sinai. The United States is also offering increased intelligence sharing, including satellite imagery and drone flights, as well as cellphone intercepts and other communications among militants suspected of plotting attacks.[226]
On 22 August 2012, the State Department urged Egypt to be transparent over Operation Eagle and any security operations in the Sinai. The State Department said that the United States supports Operation Eagle against terrorism, but stressed that Egypt must continue coordination with Israel regarding these operations and military increases in the Sinai, according to the 1979 Camp David Accords.[227] The State Department also called on Egypt to fulfill its obligations under the 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty and deal strongly with security threats in the Sinai, while ensuring that "lines of communication stay open."[228]
On 23 August 2012, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking with Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr, urged Amr to maintain lines of communication with Israel, and emphasized the importance of being transparent over the militarization of the Sinai.[214]
Multinational Force and Observers in Sinai[edit]
The Multinational Force and Observers in Sinai, a 1,650-strong international organization created in 1979 during the Camp David Accords with peacekeeping responsibilities, kept a low profile during the intensification of Operation Eagle in 2012. A representative for the organization said that "we are unable to respond to queries from the media at this time" in response to whether Egypt asked permission to move weaponry into the Sinai, and whether Israel granted it.[229]
Jordan[edit]
The Egyptian pipeline carrying natural gas to Jordan has been attacked at least 15 times since the start of the uprising in early 2011.[230] The lack of Egyptian gas hit Jordan budget severely (by JOD 1.4 billion or the equivalent of US$2 billion yearly for the past two years) and they are looking for Egypt to compensate for the lost quantities.[231]
Other[edit]
A Mada Masr journalist questioned the accuracy of Interior Ministry reports on at least two accusations.[232] CBS journalist Clarissa Ward went undercover into the Sinai and witnessed evidence of a scorched earth policy.[233]