At least 21 soldiers killed in armed clash in Egypt

At least 21 soldiers were killed on Saturday in an ambush in the Wadi Guedid, a province located southwest of Egypt, Libya and Sudan border. According to local media, an unknown group attacked with grenades and automatic rifles patrol composed of 25 members of the security forces. In addition to the 21 soldiers, three of the attackers were killed in the exchange of fire.

Witnesses quoted by the government newspaper Al Ahram say the attack surprised the military shortly after breaking the fast, which occurs at dusk during the month of Ramadan. At least four soldiers were also wounded.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the assault, but since the coup last July against Islamist Mohamed Morsi, jihadi groups have committed dozens of armed attacks of this type. Ansar Beit al Maqdis (Followers of the House of Jerusalem), inspired by the ideology of Al Qaeda and Aynad Misr (Egypt Soldiers) have attributed most of the ambushes.

According to the Ministry of Interior, more than 500 members of the security forces have died in terrorist attacks since last July. For this reason, control of borders has become a major concern for the authorities of Arab country. The province of Wadi el Guedid a border with Libya and its deserts a lot of weapons smuggling is cast, at the failure of the Egyptian authorities.

The other loophole is in the Sinai Peninsula, on the border between Egypt and Gaza. The Egyptian military has sealed over a thousand tunnels even before the overthrow of Morsi and despite the humanitarian tragedy that exists in Gaza, the authorities refuse to open the road permanently.

The border crossing has only been open temporarily on a couple of occasions since the Israeli incursion began. This Saturday, authorities prevented entry of a convoy that had left Cairo full of humanitarian aid ” for security reasons “.

Although armed attacks had declined in recent months, the instability continues, especially in sensitive areas. On Friday, a policeman was killed in a shootout in the city of Arish in northern Sinai. In the same population, eight people were killed on Monday and 32 were injured after a militia group fired a missile.

In Suez, the passage that connects the Sinai with the rest of Egypt, security forces also shot dead Saturday a civilian who had tried to break into a military installation. The Government of Abdel Fatah al Sisi insists wage war to ensure the security of the country, which strongly blamed the Muslim Brotherhood, declared a terrorist organization by Egyptian government.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=46604

Posted by Jamshed Sindhu on Jul 21 2014. Filed under Latest News, Middle East. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.