Cairo, Islamabad to Enhance Cooperation in Military Production

Egyptian Minister of Military Production Salah El-Din Mostafa met with Pakistani Ambassador in Cairo Aamir Shouket in Cairo on Sunday (Egyptian cabinet) 
Egyptian Minister of Military Production Salah El-Din Mostafa met with Pakistani Ambassador in Cairo Aamir Shouket in Cairo on Sunday (Egyptian cabinet) 
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Cairo, Islamabad to Enhance Cooperation in Military Production

Egyptian Minister of Military Production Salah El-Din Mostafa met with Pakistani Ambassador in Cairo Aamir Shouket in Cairo on Sunday (Egyptian cabinet) 
Egyptian Minister of Military Production Salah El-Din Mostafa met with Pakistani Ambassador in Cairo Aamir Shouket in Cairo on Sunday (Egyptian cabinet) 

Egypt and Pakistan on Sunday discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation in military and civil manufacturing.

Egyptian Minister of Military Production, Salah El-Din Mostafa, highlighted during his meeting with Pakistani Ambassador in Cairo, Aamir Shouket, the longstanding and steadily growing relations between Egypt and Pakistan, reinforced by the strong support of both countries’ political leadership.

The minister referred to recent high-level engagements, including President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the Extraordinary Arab-Islamic Summit in Doha.

He also praised the recent signing of a joint defense strategic agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, aimed at strengthening regional military cooperation.

Mostafa outlined the broad capabilities of Egypt’s Ministry of Military Production, which operates 15 industrial subsidiaries, a construction company, a center for scientific and technological excellence, a maintenance company, a training sector, a medical center, ammunition and weapons testing grounds, and an academy for engineering and advanced technology.

He then emphasized that the Ministry’s core mission is to supply the Armed Forces and police with military-grade products—including small, medium, and heavy ammunition, weapons, equipment, armoured vehicles, tanks, and electronic systems.

The minister added that its surplus production capacity is also directed toward manufacturing competitively priced civilian goods and participating in national development projects.

“The ministry is committed to cooperating with all global companies to localize the latest manufacturing technologies and improve the quality of military and civil products,” Mostafa said.

The minister expressed his hope for establishing strategic partnerships between Egyptian military production companies and their Pakistani counterparts in manufacturing fields, which would benefit both parties.

In July, al-Sisi met with Pakistan’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, to discuss strengthening bilateral military and security cooperation.

In May, Cairo welcomed the announced ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

In a statement by the Foreign Ministry, Egypt described the agreement as a positive step toward stability in South Asia.
Cairo expressed hope that both sides would commit to the deal, build mutual trust, and work toward peace and prosperity for their peoples.
Egypt reiterated the importance of peaceful conflict resolution and called for continued dialogue to settle international disputes.

On Sunday, the Pakistani ambassador to Egypt affirmed the depth of Egypt–Pakistan relations, which are built on mutual respect, cultural affinity, and shared geopolitical interests.

He recalled that Egypt was the first Middle Eastern country where Pakistan established an embassy following its independence.

Shouket noted that bilateral ties have expanded significantly in recent years, particularly in the areas of politics, defense, economics, and culture.

He commended Egypt’s efforts to advance its industrial base, enhance the investment climate, and undertake major infrastructure projects, thereby positioning the country as a strategic hub for access to African and Middle Eastern markets.

Shouket then expressed strong interest from Pakistani companies in collaborating with Egypt’s Ministry of Military Production, citing the Ministry’s manufacturing, technological, and human resources capabilities.

He praised its subsidiaries for their efficiency, precision, and successful track record in executing national development projects, noting that these strengths present clear opportunities for future joint ventures.

 



Israel Will Strike Hezbollah Until Group Disarmed, Vows Army Chief

A picture taken along the Israel-Lebanon border shows rockets being fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel on March 3, 2026. (AFP)
A picture taken along the Israel-Lebanon border shows rockets being fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel on March 3, 2026. (AFP)
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Israel Will Strike Hezbollah Until Group Disarmed, Vows Army Chief

A picture taken along the Israel-Lebanon border shows rockets being fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel on March 3, 2026. (AFP)
A picture taken along the Israel-Lebanon border shows rockets being fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel on March 3, 2026. (AFP)

Israel's military chief on Tuesday said his forces would keep attacking Hezbollah until the Iran-backed Lebanese group was disarmed, as the war in the Middle East raged for a fourth day.

"We are determined to eliminate the threat Hezbollah poses and will not stop until this organization is disarmed," Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir was quoted as saying in a military statement.

The latest round of fighting between Hezbollah and Israel started early Monday when Hezbollah launched rockets towards Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks on Saturday.


Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Iran Contacts with Hamas, Islamic Jihad Cut

Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhalah (R) sits beside Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and senior Iranian military officials during the funeral of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in August 2024. (Reuters)
Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhalah (R) sits beside Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and senior Iranian military officials during the funeral of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in August 2024. (Reuters)
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Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Iran Contacts with Hamas, Islamic Jihad Cut

Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhalah (R) sits beside Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and senior Iranian military officials during the funeral of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in August 2024. (Reuters)
Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhalah (R) sits beside Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and senior Iranian military officials during the funeral of late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in August 2024. (Reuters)

Israeli-US operations targeting various Iranian military and security leaders have cut off communication between officials handling the Palestinian file in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and leaders at multiple levels within Palestinian factions, both inside and outside Gaza.

Asharq Al-Awsat has learned from informed Palestinian factional sources that contact with commanders in the IRGC - whether in the Quds Force or in branches directly linked to Palestinian groups, particularly Hamas and Islamic Jihad - has been severed since the first day of the Israeli-US attacks last Saturday.

According to those sources, it remains unclear whether the IRGC commanders in question have been assassinated or are implementing standard security measures, although some had maintained contact and relayed messages through various means during the 12-day war in June.

“Messages are usually transmitted through encrypted channels, either electronically or by other means. Since the start of this war, no messages have been received,” the sources revealed.

Officials overseeing the Palestinian file in the IRGC are primarily responsible for supporting the factions, financially and militarily. They maintain regular, direct communication with top political and military leaders, and at times with second-tier officials, in efforts to develop plans and scenarios for potential or unfolding events.

The same sources said Iran had appointed a successor to Saeed Izadi, known as Hajj Ramadan, who was responsible for the Palestinian file in the Quds Force and was assassinated by Israel last June.

Two deputies were also assigned to the new commander to oversee the file in case he was killed. However, none of them have communicated with officials from Palestinian factions funded by Tehran during this period.

Deep crisis

Palestinian factions, particularly the Islamic Jihad and smaller groups such as the Popular Resistance Committees, the Mujahideen Brigades and some armed groups active in Gaza, have been facing a severe financial crisis for several months due to a sharp decline in Iranian support for more than seven months, Asharq Al-Awsat previously reported.

Before the Israeli-US strikes, leadership sources within those factions voiced concern over the potential impact, expressing fears of “the collapse of the Iranian regime, which would mean an irreversible halt to support.”

While Hamas relies on multiple funding sources, Islamic Jihad and other factions depend solely on Iranian backing. The downturn has affected salary payments to their members, raising fears of significant damage and even the potential collapse of some groups.

In a related development, sources within the Islamic Jihad told Asharq Al-Awsat that Adham al-Othman, commander of the Al-Quds Brigades, the movement’s armed wing in Lebanon, who was assassinated by Israel on Monday in Beirut’s southern suburbs, had been staying in an apartment belonging to Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

The apartment was considered a “safe location” and was secured by the party. He was killed alongside several individuals, some of whom were Hezbollah security personnel.

It remains unclear whether Israel had precise intelligence on Othman’s presence at the site or targeted it on the basis of its affiliation with Hezbollah, particularly as the Israeli military announced his killing only after a significant delay, hours after the Islamic Jihad had issued a statement mourning him.

Islamic Jihad members had taken part in attacks alongside Hezbollah along the border with Israel during what was known as the “support war”, which was launched by the party in October 2023 and ended with a ceasefire in November 2024. Some of those mourned by the group had moved to Beirut from Syria.


Israel Strikes Jamaa Islamiya Group’s HQ in Sidon, South Lebanon

Rescue workers gather in front of the destroyed center of the Jamaa Islamiya group which hit by an Israeli strike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, March, 3, 2026. (AP)
Rescue workers gather in front of the destroyed center of the Jamaa Islamiya group which hit by an Israeli strike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, March, 3, 2026. (AP)
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Israel Strikes Jamaa Islamiya Group’s HQ in Sidon, South Lebanon

Rescue workers gather in front of the destroyed center of the Jamaa Islamiya group which hit by an Israeli strike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, March, 3, 2026. (AP)
Rescue workers gather in front of the destroyed center of the Jamaa Islamiya group which hit by an Israeli strike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, March, 3, 2026. (AP)

Beirut, Lebanon, March 3, 2026 (AFP) - Israel struck a headquarters belonging to the Jamaa Islamiya group, an ally of Hamas and Hezbollah, in the southern Lebanese city of Sidon on Tuesday, state media reported.

"The Israeli enemy carried out an air raid a short while ago, targeting a headquarters of the Jamaa Islamiya" in the coastal city, state media said.

Sidon was largely spared of major Israeli attacks during the last war between Israel and Hezbollah, which a November 2024 ceasefire sought to end.

The strike almost entirely destroyed a seven-storey building, according to an AFP photographer, and ambulances rushed to the scene.

It caused a powerful blast in a densely populated area, as seen on local media.

The Jamaa Islamiya in a statement said no one was killed or wounded in the strike, which it called a "war crime".

The Israeli military then issued an evacuation warning for another building in Sidon, saying it will hit "Hezbollah military infrastructure... in light of its prohibited attempts to rebuild its activities in the area".

The Jamaa Islamiya had previously been the target of Israeli strikes in Lebanon after claiming responsibility for rocket launches towards Israel during the war between Israel and Hezbollah that began in October 2023.

Last month, it accused Israel of seizing one of its officials from a town near the border.

The Israeli military said that it "apprehended a senior terrorist" in the group who was then "transferred for further questioning in Israeli territory".