Army destroys militant hotbed, vehicles in Sinai

CAIRO – 13 June 2017: The Second Field Army destroyed a militant hotbed and four vehicles used by terrorist elements, according to an official statement by army spokesman Gen. Tamer al-Refaey, released Monday.

The Third Field Army in central Sinai also arrested a number of takfiri and stopped another vehicle loaded with explosives and materials used to manufacture bombs and improvised explosive devices (IED).

According to the statement, the operation was part of the armed forces’ efforts to eliminate the terrorist activities of takfiri elements using the Sinai Peninsula as a base for their operations. A ‘takfiri’ is a Muslim who accuses another Muslim, or a follower of Judaism or Christianity, of apostasy.

On June 9, security forces from the Third Field Army stopped two vehicles loaded with explosives and materials used in bomb and IED manufacturing on the eastern side of the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel linking Cairo and the Sinai Peninsula.