Militants from the Sinai Province group, a terrorist group affiliated with ISIS, have claimed responsibility for two separate bombings that collectively killed 14 and injured almost 50 more in Egypt on April 11. The first explosion took place outside of a police station in El-Arish and killed 8 officers. The second explosion targeted soldiers traveling in an armored vehicle near Sheikh Zuweid and killed 6.
After Islamist president Mohammed Morsi was forced from power in 2013, the new President, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, commanded new security forces to crack down on Morsi’s Muslim brotherhood supporters in the northern Sinai peninsula. As a result, a group formerly known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Champions of Jerusalem), which was “initially known for launching attacks on Israeli targets and interests,” began directing attacks towards Egyptian governmental authorities, pledged affiliation to the Islamic State, and changed their name to the Sinai Province Group (bbc2). In October 2014, for example, this group claimed responsibility (through its twitter account) for two attacks on Egyptian “military positions in the Sinai that killed more than 30 soldiers” (bbc2). Since the October bombing, “Sinai has been under a state of emergency and a curfew” (bbc1). The state of emergency in Sinai has not proved effective in curbing militant attacks, however. In April, “Sinai militants killed 15 soldiers in one of the deadliest attacks in months” (nytimes). These ISIS affiliated militants have effectively waged war on Mr. Sisi’s government.
These most recent bombings are only a continuation of the attacks that began when The Sinai Province Group started targeting government/military officials in order to seek revenge for the police crackdown on Morsi supporters.
The police station bombing in El-Arish was caused when a suicide bomber driving a pick up truck (Facebook) drove through security barriers and rammed the building (bbc1) even after being shot at multiple times. In fact, the gunfire shot on behalf of security forces may have even detonated the bomb that ended up killing 8 and wounding 45.
Just hours before, militants affiliated with the same group attacked a fuel tanker and an armored vehicle with explosives. The Egyptian military released a statement which said the attack killed an officer, a sergeant and four soldiers (bbc1).
“Sunday’s attacks bring April’s death toll to at least 41” (bbc1) in the Sinai, leaving us to wonder if President Sisi’s military-based crackdown upon Islamist terrorist groups in Egypt is the most effective way to protect the Egyptian people from violent political/religious extremism. Maybe a shift in strategy is needed.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/13/world/middleeast/sinai-group-kills-officers-in-bombings.html
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-32277286 (bbc1)
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-25882504 (bbc2)
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.882041485172849.1073745449.181662475210757&type=1
TRANS-NATIONAL CRIME AND TERRORISM 