Sisi vows to eradicate terrorism "soon", commends Sadat

CAIRO – 29 April 2018: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi on Saturday attended activities of the 28th educational seminar, organized by the Moral Affairs Department of the Armed Forces in celebration of the Sinai Liberation Day, according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency.

The event was attended by Prime Minister Sherif Ismail, Defense Minister Sedki Sobhy, and the Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Mohamed Farid, as well as a number of top officials and media figures.

During his participation in a symposium organized by the Armed Forces on Saturday to mark the 36th anniversary of Sinai Liberation Day on April 25, President Sisi vowed to eradicate terrorism in Sinai “as soon as possible.”

A documentary, entitled “Sinai, the Legend of a Place and the Epic Tale of a People” on the strenuous efforts that led to the liberation of Sinai, the sacrifices of the army’s martyrs, the ongoing fight against terrorism, and the efforts and projects to develop Sinai in a comprehensive way.

The Egyptian leader also stressed that the Egyptian state will not allow its safety and stability to be threatened or endangered by anyone.

President Sisi also commended late president Anwar Sadat’s strategic vision, his courage, and the decisions he made during war and peace, especially in light of the major obstacles that surrounded his peace initiative.

The president affirmed that the biggest challenge that currently Egypt faces is deemed an internal challenge to preserve the unity and solidarity among Egyptians.

Sisi spoke about the state of depression and lack of self-confidence that shrouded the Egyptian army after the defeat in the Six Day War in 1967 and how late President Anwar Sadat and the Armed Forces had quickly rebuilt the self-confidence and morale of the soldiers.

Egypt celebrates the completion of the withdrawal of all Israeli military forces from Sinai in 1982, as per the peace treaty reached with Israel during Sadat’s rule.

President Sisi said that when Sadat proposed the deal of the peace treaty, no one had accepted it. “No one has his farsightedness to reclaim his country’s territories, and he succeeded at the end,” Sisi said.

In his speech at the symposium, Secretary General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that the Egyptian army was confident that Egypt would reclaim all its territories in Sinai from the Israeli occupation.

About Gheit added that Israel tried to put its civilians and military soldiers in Sinai after reaching the peace treaty, adding that the 1973 war pushed forward the peace negotiations.