Acting Prosecutor-General: Zakaria Abdel-Aziz Othman Zakaria Abdel-Aziz Othman was appointed Egypt's acting prosecutor-general shortly after the craven assassination of Prosecutor-General Hisham Barakat last week. A judge at the Cairo Court of Appeal, Othman had served as assistant prosecutor- general since April. He will now temporarily assume the duties of prosecutor-general until the appointment of a new one by the Supreme Judicial Council. Othman will be responsible for overseeing the various branches of the prosecution and following the investigation of Barakat's assassination until a presidential decree names a permanent prosecutor-general following the council's decision. Othman is on the list of candidates, which also includes the chief of the public funds prosecution, the chief of Cairo branch of the court of appeal and other assistants to the prosecutor-general. Hisham Barakat was assassinated last week when his convoy was blasted shortly after he left his home by the so called Popular Resistance militia. “On his visit to Sinai, the president told the army and all Egyptians that the word ‘everything is under control' is not enough to describe the situation in Sinai. He emphasised that the situation is very stable.” Al-Ahram Do not play with fire “President Al-Sisi said ‘The Egyptian army is fire. Don't play with it' – back in 2013. Had the criminals who attacked our great army in northern Sinai heard what he said, they would have spared their effort and money, and refrained from attacking the army.” Suleiman Gouda, Al-Masry Al-Youm “The Muslim Brotherhood, Al-Jazeera and their supporters are trying to market the idea that violence and terrorism in Sinai is an internal reaction from the residents against the central authority without any external interference! The question is who pays for the weapons, the luxurious four-wheel cars and training the Saraya Beit Al-Maqdes or the Daesh Sinai Province groups?” Emadeddin Adib, Al-Watan “If the Egyptian army is not keen on the safety of the citizens of Sinai, it would have been able to uproot the terrorists and criminals there quickly. Thus, purging Sinai – which will be achieved soon – requires patience on the part of the people because it is known that the war against terrorism is not like any war that could be swiftly concluded.” Wagdi Zeineddin, Al-Wafd Never too late “Without a doubt, terrorism won by assassinating the prosecutor-general in an operation that is similar to the failed attempt to kill the former interior minister Mohamed Ibrahim in 2013. But it is not too late; a successful state is one that benefits from its mistakes. Ever since the moment of the assassination, the state has inevitably entered into a war with terrorism that should take three simultaneous tracks: combatting terrorism, forming a group of experts in guerilla war who can draw plans for combatting terrorism and launching attacks against terrorist groups to discover their hiding places before they attack the army.” Salah Montasser, Al-Ahram All hail to the Egyptian soldier “Every soldier, officer or person who faced terrorism in Sheikh Zuweid last Wednesday deserves all respect and greetings. All hail to all the unknown soldiers who defended Sheikh Zuweid and shame on those who blast electricity towers, railways, state institutions and individuals.” Emadeddin Hussein, Al-Shorouk Egyptian Essence: 30-day emergency “The Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi declared on Saturday a 30-day state of emergency after last week's beach massacre, saying that the country is ‘in a state of war' due to continued threat.” Al-Ahram Facebook “It is appropriate and better from a political viewpoint to ask the constitutional court to review the anti-terrorism law before issuing it to make sure that it is constitutional.” Nour Farahat “Criticising the security's performance does not indicate supporting terrorism and defending human rights and freedoms does not mean being hostile to the army. The Egyptian army is a profound value regardless of any political differences and combatting terrorism is a social and cultural as well as a security issue.” Ziad Akl Twiiter Dalia Ezzat @DaliaEzzat_ The scale and sophistication of IS attacks in North Sinai were unprecedented. مختار عوض @Mokhtar_Awad Morsi-era official Sh. Salama Abdel Qawy now does ISIS propaganda for them, calls on conscripts to not go to Sinai.
The Associated Press @AP Egyptian president wears combat fatigues as he delivers first public speech after attack on troops in Sinai. Deena @deenahsn Tahrir says Egypt army captured militants in Sinai recent operations, including Turkish officer, cameramen who tried to film attacks.
