Egypt Police Neutralize Terrorist Cell in Cairo Suburb

Egyptian police cadets take part in a training session at a police academy in the capital Cairo on December 30, 2019. (Mohamed El-Shahed/ AFP)
Egyptian police cadets take part in a training session at a police academy in the capital Cairo on December 30, 2019. (Mohamed El-Shahed/ AFP)
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Egypt Police Neutralize Terrorist Cell in Cairo Suburb

Egyptian police cadets take part in a training session at a police academy in the capital Cairo on December 30, 2019. (Mohamed El-Shahed/ AFP)
Egyptian police cadets take part in a training session at a police academy in the capital Cairo on December 30, 2019. (Mohamed El-Shahed/ AFP)

While Egyptians on Tuesday were waiting in front of their TV screens for the daily COVID-19 report issued by the Health Ministry, they were surprised by news reporting a security attack on a terrorist cell in Al Amiriya neighborhood, east of Cairo.

Egypt’s Interior Ministry said its security forces killed seven suspected militants in a shootout eastern Cairo following intelligence provided by the country’s security agency.

It said clashes erupted as the forces raided a 10-story apartment in the neighborhood, where members of the cell were hiding.

The ministry, which oversees police, said the forces seized weapons and ammunition in the raid, including six machine guns and four birdshot rifles.

During the raid, Lieutenant officer Mohammed Fawzy Al Hofi and seven terrorists were killed while three others were wounded.

The cell was reportedly planning attacks on the country´s Coptic Christians during the Holy Week and Easter Sunday. Egypt´s Coptic Orthodox Christians, one the world´s oldest Christian communities, would celebrate Easter on April 19.

Local television channels showed images of the gun battle between Egyptian counter-terrorism forces and the terrorist elements while security officers were appealing to people, through speakers, to stay away from the area.

Egyptian security forces have been battling a long-running insurgency mainly in the Sinai Peninsula, northeast Egypt, spearheaded by a local affiliate of the ISIS group.

Authorities launched a nationwide operation against militants in February 2018.

Tuesday’s raid came while Egyptian authorities are busy fighting the COVID-19 outbreak.

Former Assistant to the Minister of Interior Farouk al-Makrahy said: “the cell was planning to commit its terrorist operation during the nightly curfew, taking advantage of the states’ preoccupation with fighting the coronavirus.”



Israel Launches 1st Airstrike on Lebanon Since Ceasefire

This aerial view taken a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold shows traffic driving past destroyed buildings in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on November 28, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
This aerial view taken a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold shows traffic driving past destroyed buildings in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on November 28, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
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Israel Launches 1st Airstrike on Lebanon Since Ceasefire

This aerial view taken a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold shows traffic driving past destroyed buildings in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on November 28, 2024. (Photo by AFP)
This aerial view taken a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold shows traffic driving past destroyed buildings in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh on November 28, 2024. (Photo by AFP)

The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.

There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, The Associated Press reported.

The Israeli army said a warplane carried out an airstrike after "terrorist activity was detected at a Hezbollah facility containing medium-range rockets in south Lebanon."

"The IDF (Israeli army) is deployed in southern Lebanon, acting to thwart any violation of the ceasefire agreement," the Israeli military added.

The mayor of the town of Baysariyeh in southern Lebanon, Nazih Eid, told AFP that a warplane launched a raid "on the eastern edge of the town of Baysariyeh. They targeted a forested area not accessible to civilians."

The aerial attack came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.

The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah militants are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.

On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”

Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.

A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said on Thursday it was ending some protective restrictions that had limited the size of gatherings in parts of central and northern Israel.

The change was made following a situational assessment, the military said.