CAIRO: Clashes between Egyptian security forces and various groups of rogue combatants have left the Sinai region a hotbed for criminal operations and counter attacks by the security forces, closing off the Abou Redees highway amongst other clashes. Early Wednesday morning, a large number of Bedouins had cut off the south Sinai highway of Abou Redees in reaction to the deaths of two Bedouins in an earlier clash that day. The cut-off lasted three hours before the security forces managed to clear the way. Meanwhile in Al-Arish, North Sinai, a group of as of yet identified armed gunmen shot at an El-Rayesa security ambush, some of which had machine guns. The aftermath was relatively light, with a police vehicle suffering some damage, but the armed men managed. These men are also being held responsible for the shooting of two other security ambushes prior to escaping according to security sources. Men driving pickup trucks and motorcycles with no license plates, wearing helmets and masks to hide their identity have also made a clean escape after opening fire on security ambushes. According to security forces, a large amount of weaponry was being deployed against them, such as hand grenades, Rocket Propelled Grenade Launchers (RPG), automatic weapons and sniper rifles as well as a large amount of TNT which is under custody. So far according to the security sources, they have managed to arrest three people who may be linked to the attacks and have been referred t the authorities for investigation. The Sinai has been a poorly policed area in Egypt since the Camp David agreement signed between Egypt and Israel which saw the area in effect demilitarized. Since the fall of Mubarak's regime, security in the area has all but disappeared, with police forces being deployed elsewhere and military personnel being barred from the area. Thus far the police force has not made a full return to the area. Israel has allowed limited Egyptian military forces to enter the Sinai to deal with the lawlessness that has resulted from such inadequate security in the region. The importance of the Sinai region cannot be underestimated by either side, as the Egyptian-Israeli gas pipes flow through the region supplying Israel with 40 percent of its natural gas used to generate electricity. This year alone, there have been five successful attacks on the pipeline, with the latest being last Tuesday. Egyptian Journalist Hatem al-Boulk, who had witnessed the attack on a police station late last month, told IPS that he believed most of the fighters were “disaffected Bedouin, thugs and smugglers – along, perhaps, with a handful of misguided religious extremists – who don't want to see the police come back to Sinai.” The question that remains to be answered is if the current deployment of troops in the region will be enough to quell the unrest, or if the government should be doing more in the region to develop their agriculture and industry, as well as release prisoners that have been given jail sentences in absentia, as was promised to the Bedouins. BM
