CAIRO: A video purportedly by the Daesh’s affiliate in Egypt is calling on its fighters to stage attacks during next month’s presidential elections and warning Egyptians to stay away from polling centers.
The authenticity of the 23-minute video posted late Sunday on websites known to be sympathetic to the group could not be independently verified, but appeared similar to past releases by Daesh. The video makes a brief mention of an ongoing offensive by security forces against Daesh, suggesting it was made after the campaign began Friday.
The video showed what appeared to be footage of past Daesh attacks in Sinai and the gruesome killings of unarmed off-duty soldiers or men suspected of collaborating with security forces. The timing of its release and its contents, however, appear designed to project an image of the group as a resilient force in the face of what is possibly the largest offensive by government forces since the insurgency began nearly five years ago.
Egypt’s military says it has destroyed dozens of targets, killed scores of militants and detained many suspects as part of the operation, which targets “terrorist and criminal elements and organizations” and involves land, naval and air forces from the army and police. The operation covers north and central Sinai, the Nile Delta and the Western Desert along Egypt’s porous border with Libya, home to a number of militant groups.
Branding elections an act of “apostasy,” a Daesh operative speaking to the camera in the video called on the “soldiers” of the group to “spoil the day of their apostasy, shed their blood and target the heads of apostasy among them.” He also called on Muslims in Sinai and elsewhere in Egypt to stay away from polling centers and other vote-related installations, saying they would be targeted on the days of the election. The vote is staggered over three days — March 26, 27 and 28.
Such threats are routine from militant groups opposed in principle to democratic practices, or even a hollow version of them. They also rarely materialize.
President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi’s re-election is virtually assured in the March vote. After a string of potentially serious challengers have either been arrested or forced out of the race, el-Sisi’s only challenger is an obscure politician who is also among his ardent supporters. Moussa Mustafa Moussa’s last-minute entry into the race saved el-Sisi and his government from the embarrassment of a one-candidate election.
A coalition of eight opposition parties and scores of prominent pro-democracy figures called last month on voters to boycott the elections. This week, prosecutors began an investigation into complaints by pro-government lawyers accusing them of “incitement against the state” and seeking to destabilize the country.
The move by the prosecutors was the latest sign that authorities were not prepared to allow even a hint of dissent or any questioning of el-Sisi’s continued rule ahead of the vote.
On Monday, Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel-Al, a die-hard el-Sisi supporter who presides over a chamber packed with backers of the president, claimed that politicians calling for a boycott had no popular support. He also accused them of being unpatriotic. Abdel-Al, according to the official MENA news agency, was speaking at a plenary session debating legislation to set up a fund to “honor” victims of terror attacks.
Egypt’s security forces have for years fought militants in Sinai, but the insurgency became deadlier and expanded after the military in 2013, then led by el-Sisi, ousted an Islamist president, whose one year in office proved divisive. El-Sisi later oversaw what is perhaps the largest crackdown on dissent in Egypt’s modern history, jailing thousands of Islamists along with scores of secular, pro-democracy activists.
He also curbed freedoms and placed heavy restrictions on the work of rights groups as he pursued an ambitious economic reform program that has left the country’s poor majority struggling in the face of soaring prices.
Daesh calls on fighters to disrupt Egypt’s vote with attacks
Daesh calls on fighters to disrupt Egypt’s vote with attacks
Kuwaiti National Guard conducts military exercises with UAE counterparts
- Drills aim to enhance cooperation, share expertise
- The 20th edition of the exercise, known as Nasr 20, is being held at the Kuwaiti National Guard’s Command Center
LONDON: The Kuwaiti National Guard is conducting a joint military exercise this week with the UAE National Guard to enhance cooperation and share expertise in military operations.
Lt. Gen. Eng. Hashem Al-Rifai, undersecretary of the Kuwaiti National Guard, received on Tuesday Maj. Gen. Saleh Al-Ameri, commander of the UAE National Guard, and his forces, the Kuwait Press Agency reported.
The military exercises, also known as CPX — Shield, are being conducted at the Kuwaiti National Guard’s Command Center, at Sheikh Salem Ali Camp.
This is the 20th edition of the exercises, called Nasr 20, which Kuwait carries out regularly and which involves other security branches in the country as well as forces from neighboring and allied countries.
Al-Rifai conveyed to the Emirati forces the greetings of the National Guard’s leadership, Sheikh Mubarak Humoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and his deputy Sheikh Faisal Al-Nawaf Al-Sabah.
Qatar PM says to help Lebanon rebuild after government is formed
- “When it comes to economic support and support for reconstruction, there is no doubt that the State of Qatar will be there,” Qatari PM says
BEIRUT: Qatar’s prime minister said during a visit to Beirut on Tuesday that Doha would help Lebanon rebuild after a devastating Hezbollah-Israel war, but only after a new government is formed.
Reeling from years of crisis and a conflict, Lebanon has pinned hopes on Gulf states to fund reconstruction, with Qatar having been heavily involved in such efforts after the Hezbollah-Israel war of 2006.
“When it comes to economic support and support for reconstruction, there is no doubt that the State of Qatar will be there,” Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani told reporters after meeting Lebanon’s newly-elected President Joseph Aoun.
“We look forward to ongoing efforts to form a government, and after that, we will discuss these files,” Al-Thani said, adding that he looked forward to forming “a strategic partnership” with Lebanon.
Al-Thani is set to meet other senior officials during what he described as a “visit of support,” including prime minister-designate Nawaf Salam, who has been tasked with forming a government, though efforts have stalled.
Qatar was among five countries, including the United States, France, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, which lobbied heavily for Lebanon to elect a president last month and end a two-year vacuum due to political deadlock.
A fragile Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire has been in place since November 27, after more than a year of hostilities including two months of all-out war.
Al-Thani said it was crucial for Israeli troops to “adhere to the agreement on the withdrawal... from southern Lebanon.”
He also called for implementing a Security Council resolution that states United Nations peacekeepers and the Lebanese army should be the only forces present in the country’s south.
Under the truce deal, Lebanon’s military was to deploy in the south alongside UN peacekeepers as the Israeli army withdrew over a 60-day period.
Hezbollah was also to pull back its forces north of the Litani River — about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border — and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.
The withdrawal period was extended to February 18 after the Israeli military missed the original January 26 deadline.
Both sides have repeatedly accused the other of violations of the truce deal.
Al-Thani also said Qatar would continue providing humanitarian aid, as well as support for Lebanon’s cash-strapped army.
Washington is the main financial backer of Lebanon’s army but it also receives support from other countries including Qatar, which has granted in-kind and monetary aid.
Sudan’s RSF falters amid blunders, supply shortfalls
- After nearly two years of fighting, the RSF’s supplies have dwindled and its recruitment efforts have faltered
- Many of its members lack formal military training, making them increasingly vulnerable in prolonged combat, Hudson said
PORT SUDAN: Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are losing ground to the army due to strategic blunders, internal rifts and dwindling supplies, analysts say.
The regular army has made major gains, seeming to reverse the tide of a nearly two-year war that has killed tens of thousands of people and uprooted more than 12 million.
Last month, the army surged through central Sudan, reclaiming the Al-Jazira state capital of Wad Madani before setting its sights on Khartoum.
Within two weeks, it shattered RSF sieges on key Khartoum military bases, including the General Command headquarters, and overran the Al-Jaili oil refinery, the country’s biggest, just north of the capital.
Cameron Hudson, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Africa program, said while “the RSF outperformed at the start of the war because it was more prepared,” its weaknesses were now showing.
After nearly two years of fighting, the RSF’s supplies have dwindled and its recruitment efforts have faltered.
Many of its members lack formal military training, making them increasingly vulnerable in prolonged combat, Hudson said.
The army, which “was caught off guard” at the start of the war, has “had time to rebuild, recruit and rearm,” he added.
According to a former general in the Sudanese military, the army has broadened its fighter base, mobilizing volunteers, allied militias and other branches of the security apparatus.
One “critical” addition to the army’s operations has been reinstating the Special Operations Forces, part of state intelligence, the former general told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The special forces, who are trained in urban warfare according to the former general, have helped reverse what Rift Valley Institute fellow Eric Reeves called the army’s “cowardly willingness to engage only in ‘stand-off tactics’, namely artillery and aircraft strikes,” particularly in the capital.
The RSF meanwhile has overstretched its resources and exposed vulnerabilities in its military strategy, analysts say.
More than 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) separate RSF strongholds in Darfur — the vast western region nearly entirely under their control — from Khartoum, the fiercely contested metropolis.
Darfur’s strong tribal networks have supplied troops to the RSF, while crucial support from abroad has funnelled through the region’s borders with Chad and Libya, experts and the UN have said.
But attempting to expand their control into central and eastern Sudan, the paramilitaries have “stretched themselves too thin,” said Reeves, a veteran Darfur expert.
The long road — increasingly contested by the army in areas such as North Kordofan — has made resupply missions “both difficult and dangerous,” said Hamid Khalafallah, a Britain-based Sudanese researcher.
“It has become very costly for the RSF to get supplies from Darfur to the center and east,” he told AFP.
Beyond logistics, analysts say internal rifts have added to the RSF’s troubles.
“Their ability to command their forces in a coherent and organized way across the country has been severely tested,” said Magnus Taylor, deputy director of the Horn of Africa project at International Crisis Group.
In Wad Madani, the high-profile defection of an RSF commander in late 2024 has weakened the group’s hold.
The commander, Abu Aqla Kaykal — widely accused of atrocities against civilians — has since led troops on behalf of the army, according to a source in his Sudan Shield Forces militia.
Analysts say the RSF’s setbacks do not necessarily signal their defeat or an imminent end to the fighting.
They say the paramilitary force has changed its strategy, targeting civilian infrastructure in central Sudan while consolidating its hold on Darfur.
“It seems the RSF’s current strategy is to create chaos,” Hudson said.
“It is not targeting military sites, but civilians... to punish the people and the state,” he added.
RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo has remained defiant, vowing again on Friday to “expel” the army from Khartoum.
In recent weeks, the RSF has struck power plants, the only functioning hospital in the North Darfur state capital of El-Fasher and a market in Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city.
But the prize most critical to the RSF’s continued war effort is 1,000 kilometers west of Khartoum: El-Fasher, the only major city in Darfur out of its control.
Since May, the RSF has laid siege to the city as its fighters have been repeatedly repelled by the military and its allied militias.
Should the paramilitaries succeed in taking El-Fasher, “then the de facto bifurcation of the country will become much more formalized,” said Hudson.
And the RSF would put “itself in a more advantageous negotiating position, as it controls one third of the country,” he added.
Lebanese army prevents Israeli forces from entering Kfar Hamam
- Israeli convoy had crossed the border line at Shebaa Farms, and advanced toward Kfarshouba in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon
- Convoy headed toward the surroundings of Kfar Hamam, where the Lebanese army is deployed - intense gunfire was heard, and the Israeli force withdrew two hours later
BEIRUT: The Lebanese army on Tuesday blocked the main road connecting Kfar Hamam and Rashaya Al-Foukhar to prevent an Israeli force with six vehicles from advancing toward the area.
The Israeli convoy had crossed the border line at Shebaa Farms, and advanced toward Kfarshouba in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon.
It then headed toward the surroundings of Kfar Hamam, where the Lebanese army is deployed. Intense gunfire was heard, and the Israeli force withdrew two hours later.
The Lebanese response to the incursion was a step up in tactics against Israeli forces stationed in the border area.
The Israeli presence in the border region has been extended until Feb. 18 upon US approval, although the ceasefire agreement had initially stipulated that Israeli forces should completely withdraw from southern Lebanon within a 60-day period that ended on Jan. 27.
The Lebanese army has avoided entering any village subject to Israeli incursions, instead waiting for notification of their withdrawal from UN peacekeeping forces.
A ceasefire agreement that went into force on Nov. 27 last year put an end to the Israel-Hezbollah war and saw the Lebanese army redeployed in the border area.
Lebanese Army Command said on Tuesday morning: “Military troops were redeployed in Taybeh-Marjayoun in the eastern sector, as well as other regions in south of Litani, following the Israeli withdrawal.”
It added that the deployment was carried out “in cooperation with the Quintet Committee overseeing the implementation mechanism of the ceasefire agreement.”
It also repeated its call for citizens “to adhere to the directives issued in its official statements, and abide by the instructions of the military units deployed in the southern regions, to safeguard their lives and safety.”
Taybeh municipality called on the town’s residents “to cooperate with the army members and abide by their directives, until they make sure that the town is safe, with no Israeli presence.”
In another development, Lebanese Army Intelligence seized a truck loaded with weapons and ammunition left over from a warehouse targeted by Israel in the Al-Wardaniyah area in Iqlim Al-Kharroub.
A security source reported: “The truck driver and his companion noticed an Israeli military drone pursuing them from the air, prompting them to disembark from the truck and flee.
“The truck contained explosives, detonators and rocket shells, and its cargo was concealed under a large cover that obscured the contents from view.”
Meanwhile, Israeli forces across the border area continued demolishing homes and facilities that they claim belong to Hezbollah members.
On Tuesday, Israeli troops destroyed a wastewater treatment plant in the Marjeyoun plain toward Kfar Kila.
An Israeli drone released two sonic weapons in the airspace over the town of Al-Jabin. Additionally, Israeli forces destroyed trees and agricultural land, and burned several homes in the town of Houla.
Israeli forces once again violated the ceasefire agreement by conducting mock airstrikes in the skies over the northern Litani River, specifically above the regions of Nabatieh and the Western Bekaa, at a medium altitude.
The Ministry of Agriculture described the bulldozing of agricultural lands in Houla as a “painful aggression, as the bulldozing included olive groves and fruit trees, in addition to burning some houses in the town.”
The ministry said in a statement: “The Israeli enemy deliberately bulldozed the surroundings of the Israeli Al-Abbad site adjacent to the border, which contains large numbers of oak and pine trees, which causes the destruction of the environment and natural resources that are the source of livelihood for farmers.”
It is “working with the relevant authorities to follow up on the damage caused to the agricultural field in this area. We are also coordinating with international bodies to document these attacks and apply pressure for compensation to the affected farmers.”
The ministry also called on the international community “to take urgent measures to protect Lebanon’s environment and natural resources.
“We urge all relevant authorities to intensify their efforts to help farmers rebuild after the destruction caused by the Israeli aggression, especially under these critical circumstances.”
On Tuesday, Hezbollah released a statement condemning the “unjust decision” by Australia to impose sanctions on its secretary-general, Naim Qassem.
The party said: “This decision has no legal or moral basis; it is a clear bias in favor of the Zionist entity and a cover-up of its aggression and terrorism. The decision will not affect the morale of the loyal resistance supporters in Lebanon or Hezbollah’s position.”
Hezbollah also said that Feb. 23 will mark the day of the popular funerals for former secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah and his successor, Hashem Safieddine, who were both killed in Israeli raids five months ago in the southern suburb of Beirut.
Nasrallah will be buried in a field located along the old road connecting Beirut to the airport, while Safieddine will be laid to rest in his hometown of Deir Kanoun in the Sour district.
The field where Nasrallah will be buried contains a large building constructed by American Insurance in the early 1970s.
Overlooking the western lane of the old airport road, the site spans more than 20,000 sq. meters.
The building was eventually purchased by a Shiite contractor and financier close to Hezbollah for $40 million.
Mahmoud Qomati, a member of Hezbollah’s political council, said on Tuesday that the funeral “will serve as a popular referendum demonstrating adherence to the resistance and commitment to Hezbollah’s principles and Lebanon’s liberation cause.”
He added: “The funeral will be held with the utmost consideration for security and national arrangements. We will be inviting figures from Lebanon and abroad to participate in the event.”
Germany’s president arrives in Jordan to meet King Abdullah II
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier has served as president of Germany since 2017
- President’s Middle East tour began in Saudi Arabia
LONDON: Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in Jordan on Tuesday as part of a tour of the Middle East that began in Saudi Arabia this week.
Steinmeier, who has served as president of Germany since 2017, is set to meet the King of Jordan Abdullah II in Amman, the Jordan News Agency reported.
Steinmeier was received at Marka International Airport by senior Jordanian officials, the Jordanian Ambassador to Berlin Fayez Khouri, and the German Ambassador to Amman Bertram von Moltke.
Steinmeier met Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Monday.
The parties held official talks after the crown prince had hosted a reception ceremony in honor of the president.
