El-Sissi: Egypt faces a long fight against extremists
January 31, 2015
"The confrontation is tough, strong and evil. It will take a long time," el-Sissi said in a television address on Saturday.
At least 26 people, mostly soldiers, were killed in a series of simultaneous bombings and mortar attacks targeting a military base, a hotel, a police club and several checkpoints in the restive Sinai Peninsula on Thursday.
The attacks were claimed via Twitter by a militant group that had changed its name to Sinai Province, or Waliyat Sinai, in November after pledging allegiance to the Sunni militant organization "Islamic State" (IS).
In another incident, a suspected militant was killed while trying to plant a bomb in Port Said and a police officer was struck by a bomb in the canal city of Suez.
"We will not leave Sinai for anyone. Either Sinai remains to be part of Egypt or we will die," the president said after holding an emergency meeting with the army commanders.
The president returned to the capital, Cairo, early from an African Union summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on Friday in response to Thursday's attacks.
"We have chosen to confront terrorism and will emerge victorious in this war," el-Sissi said.
Surge in violence
Militants have stepped up their attacks on security forces in Sinai, which borders Israel and Gaza, since the start of an uprising against former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak in 2011. The attacks further increased after the county's military deposed Islamist President Mohammad Morsi in 2013.
Thursday's attacks were the deadliest since October and occurred despite tough security measures in place since then, including the building of a buffer zone along the border with the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has seen a sharp rise in violence and protests during the past week, as commemorations surrounding the anniversary of the uprising against Mubarak turned deadly.
shs/mkg (AP, dpa, AFP, Reuters)