CAIRO/EL-ARISH: Egypt’s army clashed with militants in Sinai on Friday, leaving two children dead as President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi flew home to deal with a wave of militant attacks that killed at least 32 people.
Health officials said a six-month-old baby was hit in the head by a bullet during the clashes and a six-year-old was killed in a rocket blast in the peninsula. Health Ministry officials said two civilians were also among those killed.
Friday’s violence came a day after rebels targeted security forces with rockets and a car bomb in North Sinai province in simultaneous attacks claimed by an affiliate of the IS group.
Most of those killed were soldiers.
Sissi pulled out of a gathering of African leaders in Ethiopia and flew home to oversee the response to the attacks.
“After the terrorist operations in the North Sinai last night, the president decided to cut short his participation in the African Union summit after attending the opening session, and returned to Cairo to monitor the situation,” a statement from Sissi’s office said.
Security officials said the bodies of at least 30 victims had been flown to Cairo. It was the deadliest wave of attacks since October when 30 soldiers were killed and scores wounded in simultaneous assaults on security forces.
The fresh bloodshed came despite new security measures implemented in North Sinai since then.
Militants have regularly targeted security forces in the Sinai Peninsula since President Muhammad Mursi was ousted by then Army Chief Sissi in July 2013.
The militants say the attacks are in retaliation for a government crackdown against Mursi supporters in which hundreds have been killed, thousands jailed and dozens sentenced to death.
US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki condemned Thursday’s attacks and said Washington “remains steadfast in its support of the Egyptian government’s efforts to combat the threat of terrorism.”
Late last year Washington delivered 10 Apache helicopters to Egypt for joint counter-terrorism operations in the Sinai.
The main focus of Thursday’s attacks was El-Arish, the provincial capital, where militants fired rockets at a police headquarters, a military base and a residential complex for security forces, officials said.
This was followed by a suicide car bombing, and militants also attacked a military checkpoint south of El-Arish.
Separately an army officer was killed when a rocket struck a checkpoint in the town of Rafah, on the border with the Gaza Strip.
Officials said at least 62 people were wounded in the attacks.
The Islamic State group’s Egyptian affiliate, Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, claimed the assaults in a Twitter account linked to it.
Egypt’s deadliest militant group said it “executed extensive, simultaneous attacks in the cities of El-Arish, Sheikh Zuweid and Rafah.”
In November the organisation pledged its allegiance to IS, which has captured large chunks of territory in Syria and Iraq.
In another incident a police officer was killed by a bomb blast in the canal city of Suez, while a suspected militant mistakenly blew himself up in Port Said while planting a device.
The October attack, also near El-Arish, prompted the authorities to build a buffer zone along the Gaza border to prevent militants infiltrating from the Palestinian enclave.
The authorities have also imposed a state of emergency and night-time curfew in parts of North Sinai since October.
Egypt’s military said Thursday’s attack was the result of “successful operations” against militants by the security forces, and “the failure of Muslim Brotherhood... in spreading chaos on the fourth anniversary of the Jan. 25 revolution” which was marked on Sunday. On Jan. 25, 2011, millions of Egyptians protested against then leader Hosni Mubarak, forcing him to step down.
Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem) has claimed most of the attacks, including the deadly October assault.
An Egyptian militant group affiliated with the Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attacks in involved locations in three Sinai towns and required a previously unseen level of coordination.
Sinai under militant attack
Sinai under militant attack
Israel denies entry to Jerusalem for Palestinian Christians marking Palm Sunday
- Israeli restrictions at checkpoints around Jerusalem require Palestinians to obtain security permits to access religious sites
- Only 6,000 permits were issued this year to the West Bank’s 50,000 Christians
LONDON: Israeli authorities prevented Palestinian Christian worshippers from entering Jerusalem from the occupied West Bank to participate in Palm Sunday.
Israeli authorities imposed strict restrictions on Jerusalem over the weekend, limiting the access of Palestinian Christians to the city, the Wafa news agency reported.
Only a limited number of worshippers, primarily residents of Jerusalem and Palestinian citizens of Israel, were able to attend religious services at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Wafa added.
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week leading up to Easter. It commemorates the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem and is observed by Eastern and Western Christian churches.
On Sunday, Patriarch Theophilos III of the Greek Orthodox Church and Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa led liturgies attended by the clergy and a small group of worshipers.
Israeli restrictions at checkpoints around Jerusalem require Palestinians — Muslim and Christian — to obtain permits to access religious sites, including the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Father Ibrahim Faltas, Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land, noted that only 6,000 permits were issued this year to the West Bank’s 50,000 Christians. Permit issuance requires a security clearance and often asks that applicants download a mobile application managed by Israeli authorities.
“This is the second consecutive year that only a small number of pilgrims are able to participate in Holy Week and Easter celebrations in Jerusalem due to the ongoing conflict (in Gaza),” Faltas told Wafa.
“Churches would continue to pray for peace, justice, and freedom for all people in the Holy Land,” he added.
The Catholic Palm Sunday procession took place on Sunday afternoon, starting from Jerusalem's Church of Bethphage and ending at the Church of Saint Anne.
Christians gathered for services at the Holy Family Catholic Church and Saint Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church in the Gaza Strip amid the ongoing Israeli attacks since late 2023. In the West Bank, Palm Sunday services were held in churches throughout Bethlehem, Jericho, Ramallah, Nablus, and Jenin.
Syrian President Sharaa heads to UAE on official visit - SANA
CAIRO: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa will travel to the United Arab Emirates for his second visit to a Gulf state as president on Sunday, Syria's official news agency reported.
He will be accompanied by foreign minister Assad al-Shibani, who visited the UAE earlier this year.
They are expected to discuss issues of mutual interest, the SANA state news agency reported.
Sharaa visited Saudi Arabia in February on his first foreign trip since assuming the presidency in January.
His visit to the UAE comes as the new Syrian leadership attempts to strengthen ties with Arab and Western leaders following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December at the hands of Sharaa's Sunni Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
(With Reuters)
Indonesia, Egypt upgrade ties to strategic partnership on Prabowo’s Cairo visit
- Jakarta, Cairo established diplomatic ties in 1947
- Prabowo was on a multi-day tour to Middle East
Jakarta: Indonesia and Egypt elevated their ties to a strategic partnership during President Prabowo Subianto’s visit to Cairo, his office said on Sunday.
Prabowo and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi signed the joint declaration following their meeting in the Egyptian capital on Saturday, the Cabinet Secretariat said in a statement.
“The signing of the joint declaration is an important milestone in diplomatic ties between the two countries, signifying Indonesia and Egypt’s strong commitment to elevate bilateral ties to a strategic level,” the statement reads.
“Through this strategic partnership, Indonesia and Egypt are committed to (strengthening) cooperation in various priority fields. From politics, economy, security, defense, culture and education ties, as well as people-to-people relations.”
Subianto was in Cairo as part of his multi-day tour to the Middle East and has visited the UAE and Turkiye. This was his second time in Egypt since taking office in October.
Egypt was one of the first countries to recognize Indonesia’s independence, with the two nations establishing diplomatic ties in 1947.
Both Jakarta and Cairo believe that their “strong and historic partnership” will provide “real benefits” for the country and their peoples, the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Egypt ranks third among Indonesia’s top export destinations in the Middle East and North Africa, just after the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
With bilateral trade volume worth around $1.7 billion in 2024, Egypt is Indonesia’s top trade partner in North Africa alone. Palm oil, coffee beans, and coconut oil are some of Indonesia’s main exports to Egypt.
“President Prabowo’s visit to Egypt is very important. The strategic partnership that resulted from it is quite broad and will be beneficial for the future of both countries,” Teuku Rezasyah, an international relations expert from Padjadjaran University in West Java, told Arab News.
While trade has been a big aspect of bilateral ties, defense cooperation will likely be a focus of the strategic partnership, he said.
“The most likely area of focus will be defense cooperation … since Egypt has experience in facing different kinds of challenges at the border,” Rezasyah said, referring to Egypt’s shared land borders with a number of states, including Libya, Sudan, and the occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza.
Through the partnership, Jakarta may be seeking to learn more closely from Cairo’s experience in dealing with various issues in the Middle East, alluding to Prabowo’s ongoing trip to the region that was aimed at boosting Indonesia’s role in ending Israel’s war on Gaza.
A staunch supporter of Palestine, the Indonesian government and people see Palestinian statehood as being mandated by their own constitution, which calls for the abolition of colonialism.
“(Learning from) Egypt’s experience might allow Indonesia to have an active role when crises occur in the Middle East, and there’s a big chance that Indonesia might get a mandate from the UN to do so,” Rezasyah said.
Turkiye’s Erdogan plans to visit Syria, timing to be determined, minister says
ANTALYA: Turkiye’s President Tayyip Erdogan plans to visit the Syrian Arab Republic and officials were working to determine suitable dates for such a visit, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday.
Israel intensifies strikes across Gaza on Palm Sunday, targets hospital in territory’s north
- Separate strike on a car in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza killed at least seven people — six brothers and their friend
- Their father, Ibrahim Abu Mahadi, said his sons worked for a charity that distributes food to Palestinians in Gaza
DEIR AL-BALAH: Israel struck a hospital in northern Gaza early Sunday, forcing patients to evacuate as attacks intensified.
The pre-dawn strike hit Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, after Israel issued an evacuation warning, according to Gaza’s ministry of health. One patient, a girl, died during the evacuation because medical staff were unable to provide urgent care, it said.
Strikes on Palm Sunday
The hospital is run by the Diocese of Jerusalem, which condemned the attack in a statement, saying it happened on “Palm Sunday, the start of the Holy Week, the most sacred week of the Christian year.” Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.
Israel said it struck a command and control center used by Hamas at the hospital to plan and execute attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers, without providing evidence. It said prior to the strike, steps were taken to mitigate harm, including issuing warnings, and using precise munitions and aerial surveillance.
In a statement Sunday, Hamas denied the allegations that the hospital was used by militants and called for an independent international investigation.
Hours later, a separate strike on a car in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, killed at least seven people — six brothers and their friend — according to staff at the morgue of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies. The brothers, of whom the youngest was 10, were buried in Deir Al-Balah.
Their father, Ibrahim Abu Mahadi, said his sons worked for a charity that distributes food to Palestinians in Gaza. “For what sin were they killed?” he said.
Associated Press reporters saw the mangled, bloodied car after the attack as relatives wept over the bodies.
Other strikes in the southern city of Khan Younis killed at least three people, according to staff at Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies.
The Israeli military also said they targeted another command and control center in the area of Deir Al-Balah when many Hamas militants were present and planning to carry out an attack against Israeli soldiers. This was not connected to the strike on the car in the same area, which the army said it was looking into.
In the last 24 hours, Gaza’s health ministry said that 11 people were killed and more than 100 wounded.
The war started after Hamas killed 1,200 people during its Oct. 7, 2023, attack, mostly civilians, and took 250 people captive, many of whom were eventually freed in ceasefire deals.
More than 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza have so far been killed in Israel’s retaliatory offensive, according to the health ministry there, which does not differentiate between combatants and civilians in its count but says more than half of the dead are women and children.
Israel expands across Gaza
The strikes came hours after Israel’s defense minister said that military activity would rapidly expand across Gaza and that people would have to evacuate from “fighting zones.” Israel also announced Saturday the completion of the Morag corridor, cutting off the southern city of Rafah from the rest of Gaza, with the military saying it would soon expand “vigorously” in most of the small coastal territory.
Israeli authorities have vowed to pressure Hamas to release the remaining 59 hostages, 24 believed to be alive, and accept proposed new ceasefire terms.
The director of Al-Ahli Hospital, Dr. Fadel Naim, said they were warned of the attack before it was struck. In a post on X, he wrote that the emergency room, pharmacy and surrounding buildings were severely damaged, impacting more than 100 patients and dozens of medical staff.
The health ministry said the strike destroyed the ward for outpatients and laboratories and damaged the emergency ward.
Images of the aftermath showed the hospital’s caved-in cement roof, surrounded by debris. Dr. Munir Al-Boursh, the health ministry’s director general called the evacuation frightening, with people carried out into the streets in hospital beds.
“It was very scary for the patients ... we did not know what happened,” he said. The health ministry said patients have since been transferred to three other hospitals in Gaza City, including Shifa, Al-Quds and the Red Crescent Field Hospital.
The aid group Medical Aid for Palestinians said this was the fifth attack on the hospital since the war began.
Medical facilities often come under fire in wars, but combatants usually depict such incidents as accidental or exceptional, since hospitals enjoy special protection under international law. In its 18-month campaign in Gaza, Israel has stood out by carrying out an open campaign on hospitals, besieging and raiding them, some several times, as well as hitting multiple others in strikes while accusing Hamas of using them as cover for its fighters.
Last month Israel struck Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis city, the largest in southern Gaza, killing two people and wounding others and causing a large fire, the territory’s health ministry said. The facility was overwhelmed with dead and wounded when Israel ended the ceasefire with a surprise wave of airstrikes.
