Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05CAIRO6986
2005-09-08 13:42:00
SECRET//NOFORN
Embassy Cairo
Cable title:
UPDATE ON SECURITY CONDITIONS IN NORTH SINAI
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 006986
SIPDIS
NOFORN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/06/2015
TAGS: PTER KISL ASEC CASC EG
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON SECURITY CONDITIONS IN NORTH SINAI
Classified by ECPO Minister-Counselor Michael Corbin for
Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).
-------
Summary
-------
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 006986
SIPDIS
NOFORN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/06/2015
TAGS: PTER KISL ASEC CASC EG
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON SECURITY CONDITIONS IN NORTH SINAI
Classified by ECPO Minister-Counselor Michael Corbin for
Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).
--------------
Summary
--------------
1. (S/NF) Following the killing of two high-ranking police
officials by what authorities call "Bedouin outcasts" in the
Jabal Halal area, the Police-led terror sweep of the Sinai
appears to have stalled amidst mined approaches and fierce
resistance. Top Egyptian officials have begun to publicly
question whether the mass arrests of Sinai Bedouins and other
"hostile" security measures taken by authorities in the wake
of the October 2004 Taba bombings have spurred terrorism in
the region. Tourism in the region, however, appears poised
to recover more quickly than expected. End summary.
--------------
Sweep Continues, Casualties Incurred
--------------
2. (SBU) The Egyptian police sweep of the northern Sinai in
search of the perpetrators of the string of recent attacks in
the peninsula has met fierce and lethal resistance.
Beginning August 23, special-forces units of the Central
Security forces, in conjunction with anti-terrorism and
General Security units, launched raids in the mountainous
areas around Jebal Halal, a 240 square kilometer area south
of El Arish in the northern Sinai.
3. (C) Two days into the raid, a police armored vehicle
traveling on a supply run struck a landmine, severely
injuring three policemen and a Bedouin guide. On August 25,
forces inspecting the scene of the previous day's blast
detonated another concealed mine. The blast killed two
senior police officials, Major-General Mahmoud Adel and
Colonel Amr Abdel-Moneim, and wounded nine other police
officers including what one report called the "head" of the
special security services. Reports that the attacks spurred
a retreat by police have been denied by security officials,
who cited a necessary pause in operations to clear the area
of mines. Anecdotal reports describe the police force as
ill-equipped to face such a challenge, and say the pause in
the onslaught was not only to clear the area of mines, but to
request and receive the necessary equipment to do the job.
4. (U) Police have singled out Salem Khadr Al Shanoub, who
they describe as a notorious weapons and drugs trafficker, as
the ringleader of a group of "outcast" Bedouin tribesmen
resisting in their mountain stronghold. Security officials
state that most of the wanted Bedouin have been arrested or
at least identified, despite reports of the August 28 escape
of several suspects from police encirclement. North Sinai MP
Mohamed Al-Kashef said that he was contacted by Shannoub who
denied any involvement in the attacks.
5. (S/NF) Local contacts characterize the "outcast" Bedouins
as those, who by their criminality on non-conformity to
traditional Bedouin social norms, have been banished from
permanent residence with the tribe. They feel that these
outcasts are ripe for exploitation or indoctrination by
extremist groups or ideologies which the Bedouin normally
shun.
6. (U) According to Al-Kashef, investigations into the recent
Sinai attacks have led to the arrest of approximately 700
individuals, with 500 still remaining in custody. Over 150
individuals were arrested in the week of the August 25 attack
alone. Reports place the number of police engaged in the
sweep at over 5,000.
--------------
Links to Other Blasts
--------------
7. (SBU) The parties responsible for the attacks, and their
possible links with international terrorist organizations
remains unclear. Ministry of Interior officials are
exploring the links between the bombs used in the Taba, Sharm
and El Gourah-MFO attacks, positing that they were of the
same type and produced in the El Arish area. They describe
the devices as "crude," being comprised of gasoline canisters
and as-yet-unidentified explosive materials. However,
contradictory reports citing anonymous sources have described
the types of explosives used as being sophisticated and new
to Egypt. Officials publicly continue to lay the blame for
the Sinai attacks on local elements, but some unnamed
security sources in speaking to the international press have
also claimed links to "outside" terrorist organizations.
--------------
PM Talks Roots of Sinai Terror
--------------
8. (U) PM Nazif was quoted in a recent New York Times piece
as saying that the GOE was examining other "social" factors
that may have spurred the latest attacks. These factors,
such as the police response to the October 2004 Taba bombings
where several thousand residents in the northern Sinai were
arrested and held for questioning, could have spawned
vengeance on the part of the aggrieved. Nazif has avoided
directly criticizing the Ministry of the Interior, however.
In a speech commemorating the death of the two police
officials in Jabal Halal, Nazif praised the MOI's role in
maintaining security and stability in the country. The PM
also opined in his interview about the possibility of
international involvement in the attacks, a theory at odds
with predominant government position that the perpetrators
were known and local.
--------------
Taba Trial
--------------
9. (U) On August 30, an Ismailiya State Security court judge
postponed continuation of the Taba bombings trial until
September 25-26, citing the need to call more witnesses. The
adjournment came just two weeks after the resumption of the
trial on August 14. The judge announced that the head of
security of South Sinai and his aide must appear as witnesses
before the court. The judge also called for an explanation
of the failure of the Hilton hotel's CCTV monitoring system
to record footage of the vehicle which struck the hotel.
--------------
Tourism/Economy
--------------
10. (U) Indicators continue to point to a healthy recovery
for tourism in Sharm El Sheikh following the July 23 blasts.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, the average occupancy
rate, which dipped to 30 percent in the immediate aftermath
of the attacks, has now bounced back to 62 percent. The
Egyptian Tourism Federation reports that arrivals of
Italians, traditionally the largest group of foreign visitors
in August, outpaced departures by mid-month. International
tour operators are reporting near-normal bookings to Sharm
for European travelers. Tourist arrivals for July and August
are up 24 percent on the same period last year.
11. (U) In Egypt overall, the Ministry forecasts 9 million
visitors to the country by year-end, slightly lower than
forecasts but an increase on the 8.1 million recorded on
2004.
12. (U) The Emergency Labor Welfare Fund, formed after the
blasts to offset negative employment effects of the attacks,
announced it will disburse a "first installment" sum of LE
800,000 (USD 139,000) to 3,468 beneficiaries.
--------------
Comment
--------------
13. (C) The laying of mines to target police represents an
escalation on the part of the Bedouin, and one that the
police appeared ill-prepared at first to counter. The
question as to whether the Sinai terrorists are purely a
home-grown phenomenon or directly linked to international
terror networks looms large. The GOE would like the public
focus to remain on the former theory, but this compels the
leadership to address uncomfortable questions about prior
police treatment of the Bedouins as a root cause.
Nonetheless, the Egyptian assertion that the Sinai terrorists
are purely homegrown and devoid of outside influence seems to
be wearing thin. Reporting in other Embassy channels
reinforces the impression that the campaign has not gone as
planned for the police, and that additional government
resources are being brought to bear. End comment.
Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo
You can also access this site through the
State Department's Classified SIPRNET website.
RICCIARDONE
SIPDIS
NOFORN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/06/2015
TAGS: PTER KISL ASEC CASC EG
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON SECURITY CONDITIONS IN NORTH SINAI
Classified by ECPO Minister-Counselor Michael Corbin for
Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).
--------------
Summary
--------------
1. (S/NF) Following the killing of two high-ranking police
officials by what authorities call "Bedouin outcasts" in the
Jabal Halal area, the Police-led terror sweep of the Sinai
appears to have stalled amidst mined approaches and fierce
resistance. Top Egyptian officials have begun to publicly
question whether the mass arrests of Sinai Bedouins and other
"hostile" security measures taken by authorities in the wake
of the October 2004 Taba bombings have spurred terrorism in
the region. Tourism in the region, however, appears poised
to recover more quickly than expected. End summary.
--------------
Sweep Continues, Casualties Incurred
--------------
2. (SBU) The Egyptian police sweep of the northern Sinai in
search of the perpetrators of the string of recent attacks in
the peninsula has met fierce and lethal resistance.
Beginning August 23, special-forces units of the Central
Security forces, in conjunction with anti-terrorism and
General Security units, launched raids in the mountainous
areas around Jebal Halal, a 240 square kilometer area south
of El Arish in the northern Sinai.
3. (C) Two days into the raid, a police armored vehicle
traveling on a supply run struck a landmine, severely
injuring three policemen and a Bedouin guide. On August 25,
forces inspecting the scene of the previous day's blast
detonated another concealed mine. The blast killed two
senior police officials, Major-General Mahmoud Adel and
Colonel Amr Abdel-Moneim, and wounded nine other police
officers including what one report called the "head" of the
special security services. Reports that the attacks spurred
a retreat by police have been denied by security officials,
who cited a necessary pause in operations to clear the area
of mines. Anecdotal reports describe the police force as
ill-equipped to face such a challenge, and say the pause in
the onslaught was not only to clear the area of mines, but to
request and receive the necessary equipment to do the job.
4. (U) Police have singled out Salem Khadr Al Shanoub, who
they describe as a notorious weapons and drugs trafficker, as
the ringleader of a group of "outcast" Bedouin tribesmen
resisting in their mountain stronghold. Security officials
state that most of the wanted Bedouin have been arrested or
at least identified, despite reports of the August 28 escape
of several suspects from police encirclement. North Sinai MP
Mohamed Al-Kashef said that he was contacted by Shannoub who
denied any involvement in the attacks.
5. (S/NF) Local contacts characterize the "outcast" Bedouins
as those, who by their criminality on non-conformity to
traditional Bedouin social norms, have been banished from
permanent residence with the tribe. They feel that these
outcasts are ripe for exploitation or indoctrination by
extremist groups or ideologies which the Bedouin normally
shun.
6. (U) According to Al-Kashef, investigations into the recent
Sinai attacks have led to the arrest of approximately 700
individuals, with 500 still remaining in custody. Over 150
individuals were arrested in the week of the August 25 attack
alone. Reports place the number of police engaged in the
sweep at over 5,000.
--------------
Links to Other Blasts
--------------
7. (SBU) The parties responsible for the attacks, and their
possible links with international terrorist organizations
remains unclear. Ministry of Interior officials are
exploring the links between the bombs used in the Taba, Sharm
and El Gourah-MFO attacks, positing that they were of the
same type and produced in the El Arish area. They describe
the devices as "crude," being comprised of gasoline canisters
and as-yet-unidentified explosive materials. However,
contradictory reports citing anonymous sources have described
the types of explosives used as being sophisticated and new
to Egypt. Officials publicly continue to lay the blame for
the Sinai attacks on local elements, but some unnamed
security sources in speaking to the international press have
also claimed links to "outside" terrorist organizations.
--------------
PM Talks Roots of Sinai Terror
--------------
8. (U) PM Nazif was quoted in a recent New York Times piece
as saying that the GOE was examining other "social" factors
that may have spurred the latest attacks. These factors,
such as the police response to the October 2004 Taba bombings
where several thousand residents in the northern Sinai were
arrested and held for questioning, could have spawned
vengeance on the part of the aggrieved. Nazif has avoided
directly criticizing the Ministry of the Interior, however.
In a speech commemorating the death of the two police
officials in Jabal Halal, Nazif praised the MOI's role in
maintaining security and stability in the country. The PM
also opined in his interview about the possibility of
international involvement in the attacks, a theory at odds
with predominant government position that the perpetrators
were known and local.
--------------
Taba Trial
--------------
9. (U) On August 30, an Ismailiya State Security court judge
postponed continuation of the Taba bombings trial until
September 25-26, citing the need to call more witnesses. The
adjournment came just two weeks after the resumption of the
trial on August 14. The judge announced that the head of
security of South Sinai and his aide must appear as witnesses
before the court. The judge also called for an explanation
of the failure of the Hilton hotel's CCTV monitoring system
to record footage of the vehicle which struck the hotel.
--------------
Tourism/Economy
--------------
10. (U) Indicators continue to point to a healthy recovery
for tourism in Sharm El Sheikh following the July 23 blasts.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, the average occupancy
rate, which dipped to 30 percent in the immediate aftermath
of the attacks, has now bounced back to 62 percent. The
Egyptian Tourism Federation reports that arrivals of
Italians, traditionally the largest group of foreign visitors
in August, outpaced departures by mid-month. International
tour operators are reporting near-normal bookings to Sharm
for European travelers. Tourist arrivals for July and August
are up 24 percent on the same period last year.
11. (U) In Egypt overall, the Ministry forecasts 9 million
visitors to the country by year-end, slightly lower than
forecasts but an increase on the 8.1 million recorded on
2004.
12. (U) The Emergency Labor Welfare Fund, formed after the
blasts to offset negative employment effects of the attacks,
announced it will disburse a "first installment" sum of LE
800,000 (USD 139,000) to 3,468 beneficiaries.
--------------
Comment
--------------
13. (C) The laying of mines to target police represents an
escalation on the part of the Bedouin, and one that the
police appeared ill-prepared at first to counter. The
question as to whether the Sinai terrorists are purely a
home-grown phenomenon or directly linked to international
terror networks looms large. The GOE would like the public
focus to remain on the former theory, but this compels the
leadership to address uncomfortable questions about prior
police treatment of the Bedouins as a root cause.
Nonetheless, the Egyptian assertion that the Sinai terrorists
are purely homegrown and devoid of outside influence seems to
be wearing thin. Reporting in other Embassy channels
reinforces the impression that the campaign has not gone as
planned for the police, and that additional government
resources are being brought to bear. End comment.
Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo
You can also access this site through the
State Department's Classified SIPRNET website.
RICCIARDONE