Sinai 2018 is best response for our terrorism war doubters: MPs

CAIRO – 10 January 2018: Egypt’s members of parliament praised the announced military operation “Sinai 2018" to purge the country from terrorism and preserve its security and stability. “This operation is the best response for the doubters in our terrorism war,” most MPs agreed.

Tarek Radwan, head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in parliament told Egypt Today on Friday that Egypt’s war against terrorism is a strong message to the whole world about our capabilities and challenges. “The governments and countries that support terrorism in the world should be questioned for destabilizing the region’s security and risking the world’s safety. These countries are well-known to everyone,” he said.

Radwan assured that Sinai is considered as one of the most important economic cities and zones in the world. “In order to maximize its benefits, the terrorist groups and militia should be eliminated, because they would destroy whatever the state will build.”

Deputy Secretary of the Parliament Al-Sayed al-Sharif argued that the whole world must show its support for Egypt in its battle against terrorism, “not just through their statements, but with real actions and strategies against the terrorist militia and groups that threat the whole world.”

Additionally, member of the defense committee in parliament, major general Salama al-Gohary, affirmed in his statements that Sinai is integral part of Egypt that should not be threatened with terrorism. “Egypt is bigger than any militia that tries to destabilize its security and stability. The operation announced today by the army says that we are capable of dealing with all greed, threat and challenge,” al-Sharif affirmed.

Earlier, House of Representatives Speaker Ali Abdel Aal expressed the parliament’s complete support for the Egyptian Armed Forces’ counter-terrorism operation launched on Friday in the Sinai Peninsula.

Abdel Aal applauded the army and police sacrifices in their struggle against the enemies of the nation, urging the Egyptian people to stand behind their military until it eliminates the terrorist threat in the country.
Egypt launched a major security operation named “Sinai 2018” involving the army and police against terrorist and criminal elements and organizations’ across the country, mainly in Sinai, as part of the army’s long standing crack down on the jihadist insurgency escalated since the ousting of ex-Muslim brotherhood-affiliated president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
Abdel Aal said in previous statement on Thursday that Egypt has witnessed a severe decline in the number of terrorist operations in the last period thanks to the police and army’s counterterrorism efforts.

“The anti-terrorism measures should not be restricted to military and security operations, but they also include addressing economic, cultural and social aspects of the phenomena, hence Egypt established a higher council to combat terrorism and extremism which focuses mainly on precaution measures," Abdel Aal added.
Following the bloody terrorist attack on the Rawdah mosque that killed more than 300 people in November 2017, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered the military command to use all force necessary to secure the Sinai Peninsula within three months.
On Friday morning, the police announced the highest state of alert in all Egyptian governorates amid the fierce war against terrorism, while the military spokesperson, Chief Colonel Tamer Rifai, released two consecutive televised statements on the operation.

The first statement read as follows:
"As part of the mandate given by the President, the Commander-in-chief of the armed forces ordered the General Command of the armed forces, and the Ministry of the Interior to conduct a comprehensive confrontation of terrorism and other criminal operations in close cooperation with all state institutions, This morning the law enforcement forces began to implement the comprehensive confrontation plan of terrorist and criminal elements and organizations in North and Central Sinai and other areas of the Delta and the Western Desert. This is in addition to carrying out other training and operational tasks and exercises in all strategic directions, with a view to controlling the state's external outlets, to ensure the realization of the planned objectives of clearing areas where there are terrorist hotbeds, and to fortify Egyptian society from the evils of terrorism and extremism in parallel with other crimes affecting security and internal stability."


Spokesman of the armed forces, Chief Colonel Tamer Rifai

In statement No. 2 on the comprehensive anti-terrorism operation, the spokesperson confirmed, “The Air Force is targeting hotbeds and dens of terrorist elements in the north and central Sinai,” aired at 11:50 am Cairo local time on Friday.

The second statement read as follows:
"As part of ongoing law enforcement efforts, elements of the Air Force have targeted some of the hotspots, dens, weapons and ammunition depots used by terrorist elements as bases for targeting law enforcement forces and civilians in Northern and Central Sinai.

Maritime personnel insurance procedures are also in sight of elements of the naval forces, with a view to cutting off the supply lines for terrorist groups. Border guard and civilian police forces are tightening the security procedures at the border gates, as well as tightening the security procedures for the watercourse.
Joint elements of the army and the police are intensifying the security measures in order to complete the vital goals in areas throughout the country."