Sympathizers of Islamist insurgency in Egypt's Sinai have recently launched a social media campaign against the army, accusing it of committing "war crimes" against civilians in the peninsula. The multiplatform campaign, which began on 21 March, also highlights the military's alleged use of US-made weapons against civilians. Posts on Facebook pages suggested similarities between the tactics of the Egyptian and Israeli militaries in putting down unrest. These pages posted photos and videos of the Egyptian army allegedly destroying mosques and homes in Sinai. Graphic photos of civilian casualties were also displayed. Since July, the Egyptian army has been launching a full-scale assault on militant groups in the restive North Sinai. Israeli officials have approvingly called the assault as the first-ever serious counter-terrorism campaign in the region. Militant Islamist groups in Sinai have killed dozens of police and army officers in an insurgency sparked by anger at the ouster of Islamist president Mohammad Morsi in July. On 21 March, a group of Sinai insurgent sympathizers announced the start of the "Sinai Cry" social media campaign to expose what it claimed "Egyptian army war crimes" against civilians in the Sinai. Meantime, several jihadist forums and websites announced their support for the "Sinai Cry" campaign and have been posting videos and graphics supportive of it. Some of these forums announced their participation in a "global campaign in support of our Muslim brothers in Sinai against the Egyptian army's brutality and injustice." The campaign highlighted the alleged use of US-made Apache helicopters and Hellfire missiles to attack civilian targets. On 27 March, the "Sinai Cry" Facebook page posted a photograph of what it claimed was wreckage from a Hellfire missile, with an Arabic comment reading "Again, villages in North Sinai have a date with US missiles - save your brothers and your people in Sinai." On 25 March, the page posted a photograph of a bombed mosque, with an Arabic caption reading "See the tyranny of the Egyptian army, violating the sanctity of God... with Hellfire missiles from America." The page also posted a photo of a destroyed building, claiming that it was bombed by a "US-made Apache Helicopter armed with US Hellfire missiles." The "Sinai Cry" campaign portrays Israel and Egypt as collaborating together against jihadists in Sinai and appears to draw similarities between the alleged Egyptian army's attacks on civilians and Israeli attacks on Palestinians. The "Sinai Cry" Facebook page posted a photo of Egyptian and Israeli soldiers posing together, with a caption reading "Israeli newspaper - Egypt and Israel coordinated at the highest levels for the fight against jihadists in Sinai." A Sinai insurgency supporter posted on his Twitter account a "Sinai Cry" photo allegedly of an Egyptian soldier giving a thumbs-up in front of a burning Sinai farm with a caption reading "Al-Sisi's army burns Sinai olive groves on behalf of the Israelis." The photo could not be independently verified by Islamist Gate. The "Sinai Cry" campaign has received modest coverage, primarily through jihadist forums and social media sites. On 19 March, the Ansar al-Sunna jihadist forum posted a "Sinai Cry" video titled "Sinai is appealing for help". The video included graphic photographs of children and civilians allegedly killed in airstrikes by the Egyptian army. Another jihadist website posted a link to "Sinai Cry" graphics, with a caption reading "Support your oppressed people in Sinai." The jihadist group Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, meanwhile, produced a video titled "Steadfastness of the proud" that used some of the same footage used by the "Sinai Cry" campaign. It accused the Egyptian army of crimes against civilians, including the "brutal shelling of homes by Apache aircraft and the killing of women and children." The surge of insurgency in Sinai, the peninsular sandwiched between Egypt and Israel, has heightened concerns in both countries about what analysts describe as the growing presence of Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists along the Jewish state's borders. Egypt and Israel have been at peace since their landmark accord in 1979. The agreement lays out restrictions on the number of troops that Egypt can deploy in Sinai, which Israel returned to Egypt as part of the peace accord.
