Morsi axes top security chiefs in post-Sinai attack shake-up

CAIRO // Egypt yesterday declared its miltary campaign against Islamist militants in northern Sinai a "complete success" in its most aggressive action in the peninsula in nearly 40 years. Helicopter gunships and jets fired missiles at several encampments and killed at least 20 militants. It was the first time the military had fired missiles in the region since the 1973 war with Israel to recapture the peninsula, which Israel seized during the 1967 war. The campaign continued on the political front later yesterday when the president, Mohammed Morsi, wielded a ruthless axe on the security establishment. Mr Morsi replaced the acting chief of the general intelligence service; fired the governor of north Sinai; asked the defence minister Hussein Tantawi to replace the commander of the military police; fired the commander of the presidential guards; and named new chiefs for security in Cairo and the police's central security, a large paramilitary force often deployed to deal with riots. The overhaul came after unidentified attackers killed 16 soldiers near a border crossing into Israel on Sunday. They stole two vehicles, one of which barrelled into Israel for a presumed second attack. Israeli forces destroyed the armoured personnel carrier and killed eight men. The deployment of new forces to Sinai is the clearest sign yet that the Egyptian government is taking the deteriorating security situation there seriously. "Elements from the armed forces and interior ministry supported by the air force began a plan to restore security by pursuing and targeting armed terrorist elements in Sinai, and it has accomplished this task with complete success," a military statement said. Israeli officials praised the Egyptian crackdown. "What we see in Egypt is a strong fury, a determination of the regime and the army to take care of it and impose order in Sinai because that is their responsibility," said senior Israeli defence official Amos Gilad. The Sinai region has long been unstable because of the grievances of Bedouin communities there, who had been the target of Egyptian intelligence and security services in the Mubarak regime and claimed their lands were stolen by the government. But extremist groups have escalated confrontations in Sinai since last year's uprising that forced Hosni Mubarak to step down as president. There have been 15 gas pipeline bombings and several deadly clashes with police officers since then. Sunday's attack on Egyptian soldiers was the most brazen attack yet and has led Mr Morsi into his most pressing security challenge. The Egyptian attacks yesterday have created a tense situation for residents of northern Sinai. One Bedouin man, who declined to be named yesterday because he feared speaking out against the military, said residents of Sheikh Zuweid in between Arish and Rafah could not sleep because of the explosions. "We don't know what they are attacking, but it sounds very near," he said. Egypt's state news agency, Mena, said land forces killed militants who had shot rockets at Egyptian aircraft. "Terrorist elements fired rockets and shells and heavy machineguns … at the aircraft combing the area, but did not hit the aircraft, and ground forces then dealt with them and killed a number of them," the agency said. Several Islamist extremist groups have announced their presence in Sinai over the past year and a half, according to Aaron Zelin, who runs a website called Jihadology, tracking extremists. Most, including Al Qaeda in the Sinai Peninsula, Ansar Al Jihad and Jund Al Shari'ah, have only posted random statements online. But at least one group, Majilis Shura Al Mujahidin Fi Aknaf Bayt Al Maqdis, has proven more active, he said. Its name means: "the Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem". The group posted a video martyrdom video after a Saudi and an Egyptian crossed into Israel and killed a worker near the border. They were both killed by Israeli forces. It is not yet known whether the group has any connection with the killing of the Egyptian soldiers, but analysts said the attack bore the trademarks of Islamist extremism. Hamas, which rules the nearby Gaza Strip, has denied any role in the attack and condemned the deaths of the Egyptian soldiers. Regional governments and political forces have laid the blame on a range of parties. Israeli officials have suggested Iran played a role, and the Muslim Brotherhood blamed Israel's intelligence agency Mossad. Follow The National on & Bradley Hope on * With additional reporting by Reuters and the Associated Press

Morsi axes top security chiefs in post-Sinai attack shake-up

The overhaul came after unidentified attackers killed 16 soldiers near a border crossing into Israel on Sunday, prompting Egypt's most aggressive military campaign in the Sinai peninsula in nearly 40 years.