Egypt Army Announces Progress in Sinai Campaign

Local Editor

The Egyptian army announced that it continues to demolish buildings deemed a security threat in the Sinai Peninsula, close to the border with the Gaza Strip, the army said.

Ahmed Ali, an Egyptian army spokesman, said on Sunday that the move was geared to consolidate security in the border region, where he said the military had discovered a network of booby traps.
"There is cooperation between the armed terror groups with their counterparts in the Gaza Strip, and more than one joint operation has been monitored," Ali said.

In parallel, he clarified that the army was "dealing" with any building deemed a security threat in a corridor stretching from 500 meters to 1km from the Gaza frontier.
He was speaking during a news conference in Cairo to present the army's progress since it stepped up operations against armed groups in Sinai last week.

Fighters have intensified attacks in Sinai since July, when the army deposed President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood, who have links to Hamas.
Attacks on security forces are now occurring almost daily. Authorities say attacks have killed more than 100 policemen and soldiers in recent months.
The army has used tanks and military gunships in its offensive against the fighters.

In parallel, Ali stated that troops have arrested 309 suspects, including Palestinians, in operations that began in the region in July.
Ali declined to accuse Hamas Movement in Gaza directly of attacks in Egypt, though he said hand grenades stamped with the name of the Palestinian group's armed wing, the Qassam brigades, had been found in the security sweep.
The army seized weapons including anti-aircraft missiles, he said.

In the last 48 hours, Ali said, troops had discovered explosives laid in tunnels along the border and under Egyptian watchtowers, with detonating wires running back into Gaza.
Hamas government spokesman Ihab al-Ghussein denied fighters were using the Palestinian territory as a staging ground for operations against Egypt.
"We deny any connection between Gaza, its resistance and government, and the tunnels and the explosives which were mentioned by the Egyptian army spokesman today," al-Ghussein told reporters.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team