Egyptian children play with fireworks at the start of Ramadan. Photograph: APAImages/Rex/Shutterstock

An Egyptian science fiction drama that predicts Israel’s destruction has provoked an angry reaction from the Jewish state, including from the country’s foreign ministry, which reminded its neighbour of a decades-old peace deal.

Set in the year 2120, the series called El-Nehaya, meaning The End, imagines a bleak future with cloned robots, battered skyscrapers, and relentless violence.

In episode one, the protagonist, played by acclaimed actor Youssef el-Sherif, tells his students of a war to “liberate Jerusalem” that occurred before Israel turned 100, less than three decades from the present day.

He said Israeli Jews of European origin returned to Europe. However, he did not mention what happened to the several million Jews in Israel of Middle Eastern descent. The US, too, had broken up, said el-Sherif, who plays a teacher and engineer.

Israel’s foreign ministry said the show was “unfortunate and unacceptable. Especially between countries who have had a peace agreement for 41 years.”

Once enemies, the two states have worked closely on security issues since the 1979 treaty and also to enforce a blockade in Gaza, the Palestinian enclave with which they both share a frontier.

Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Post newspaper called on its government to go even further than “a rather bland statement”, citing a clause in the peace treaty that states the two sides would “abstain from hostile propaganda against each other.”.

The 30-episode series is made by Synergy, which has ties with the government of President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and airs on the ON television network, which is owned by a pro-government company.

“Shows like these could not be aired without at least a wink from Cairo,” the Jerusalem Post article said.

El-Nehaya is one of many dramas and soap operas that launched during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan when people typically stay at home and watch television while fasting.

Its scriptwriter, Amr Samir Atif, told the Associated Press that the destruction of Israel “is a possible future in the absence of real peace and true stability in the region. Peace should be based on justice.”

There was no comment from the Egyptian government.

It is not the first Egyptian series to anger Israel. In 2002, Horseman Without a Horse, which depicted the Arab fight against the establishment of the state of Israel, but included antisemitic cliches about Jewish conspiracies for world domination.

Washington also complained at the time, saying it was “a programme that promotes hatred”.

Other Ramadan shows this year have broken ground for the opposite message to El-Nehaya – highlighting the normalization of some Middle Eastern countries’ relations with Israel.

In one Saudi drama, Exit 7, a character questioned whether Israel should remain an enemy and if Riyadh’s support for a Palestinian state had been fruitless. The show was seen as mirroring the position of Saudi Arabia’s government, which has increased ties with Israel, partly due to their shared arch-enemy, Iran.

Source:  https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/01/egyptian-tv-show-el-nehaya-about-israels-destruction-opens-real-world-rift

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in New York . (photo credit: AVI OHAYON – GPO)Military cooperation between Egypt and Israel has reached an unprecedented level

in the Sinai Peninsula, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in an interview with CBS News which will be broadcast Sunday.

Asked if security cooperation with Israel was the closest ever between two countries which were once enemies, he answered, “That is correct… We have a wide range of cooperation with the Israelis.”

Israel shares a 240-km.-long border with the restive Sinai Peninsula, and Cairo and Jerusalem have been reportedly closely cooperating in the fight against an estimated 1,000 ISIS terrorists in the region since Sisi rose to power.

Northern Sinai, a mountainous desert between the Suez Canal and Israel, has been a refuge for Islamist terrorists, with the peninsula’s main jihadist group, Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, carrying out several attacks – some deadly – against IDF troops patrolling the border.

Following Sisi’s rise to power, the group – which pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Islamic State in 2014 – began a wave of deadly attacks against Egyptian security forces in the Sinai.

Sisi began waging military operations against the jihadists, and while the terrorist group has lost much of its strength, it remains active and continues to carry out deadly attacks.

In February 2017, following a massacre of 305 worshipers at al-Rawda mosque in the northern Sinai city of Bir el-Abd, a senior Israeli defense official stated that the “relationship between Israel and Egypt is ongoing. Israel has always been ready to lend a hand and provide assistance to any country in the war against terrorism, in this case and in the future as well.”

According to foreign reports, the militaries of the two countries meet regularly to exchange intelligence in the fight against ISIS, and Cairo has given the green light to Jerusalem to strike the terrorists by air.

In February, The New York Times reported that for more than two years Israel had been carrying out a full-blown covert aerial campaign against ISIS terrorists in the Sinai, conducting some 100 airstrikes by unmarked drones, helicopters and jets, with Sisi’s approval.

The report also stated that it was “unclear if any Israeli troops or special forces have set inside Egyptian borders,” as it would increase the risk of exposure for the two sides which have remained, until now, mum on the cooperation.

In Israel, the military censor has restricted reports of the cooperation. Following the interview with CBS’s Scott Pelley, the Egyptian ambassador contacted the network and requested that the interview – which also touched on the jailing of Sisi’s opponents and the massacre of 800 civilians when he was defense minister – not be aired.

CBS has insisted that the interview will nonetheless be broadcast on Sunday at 7 p.m. EST/PST.

The post Egypt’s SISI: Military Cooperation with Israel at Unprecedented levels first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

A group of terrorists stormed the mosque in west Arish City in four off-road vehicles and opened fire on worshipers during Friday prayers after a bomb was detonated, according to eyewitnesses.

Eyewitnesses further added that militants set fire in nearby cars and blocked the road in al-Rawdah Village.

Reported by state media, the death and injury toll kept rising on Friday afternoon as more details got clarified.

Security forces and medical personnel immediately moved to the scene and halted traffic on Arish-Qantara Road, which leads to the damaged mosque, to scout the area and provide medical assistance to the injured.

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi held an urgent meeting following the attack to stand on its latest developments and issue directives to contain the situation.

President Sisi, in a TV statement, strongly condemned the abhorrent terrorist attack and mourned the victims while extending his condolences to their families.

He added that Egypt will respond to this attack in “brute force against that small band of extremist terrorist”.

The Egyptian leader further added that the “cowardly” attack reflects how much inhumane the perpetrators are, asserting that this will not pass without decisive punishment and that justice will be served against everyone who participated, contributed, supported, funded or incited this attack on worshipers.

The president affirmed that the pain that the Egyptian people are experiencing at this difficult time will not go in vain and that it will fuel their determination to succeed in the war against terrorism.

The attack is considered by far one of the deadliest attacks in the country’s recent memory; it marks major escalation in Cairo’s battle against terrorism.

He emphasized that the attacks in Sinai reflect Egypt’s efforts against terrorism and that Egypt leads the fight “on its own, and on behalf of the region and the entire world.”

“All what is happening is an attempt to stop our efforts in our fight against terror and an attempt to break our will and measures in ending the terrible criminal scheme that aims to destroy what remains of the region,” Sisi added.

Addressing the Egyptian people, Sisi said, “The fight you are going through is the most noble and honorable fight of all.” He added that the state is steadfast and will continue the fight against terrorism.

Three-day state mourning was announced; meanwhile, international condemnations have been issued in numerous statements worldwide. A total of LE 200,000 ($11,300) and LE 50,000 will be dispensed to the family of each worshiper whose life has been claimed and each injured victim, respectively.

President Sisi’s words already started to come into effect as the Egyptian Air Force conducted air raids targeting terrorist hideouts in mountain areas near the mosque.

Moreover, security forces began large-scale combing operations in Arish City, expanding their inspection around the militant attack area.

The security forces questioned a number of people who witnessed the militant attack.

They intensified a state of security around al-Rawdah mosque in west Arish City where the militant attack occurred, and reinforced ambushes with a number of police elements and modern equipment.

For its part, the Ministry of Justice ordered Director of the Department of Forensic Medicine, Hisham Abdel Hamid, to send a team of forensic doctors, assistants and technicians to North Sinai hospitals, where bodies of the victims were transferred.

Investigations into the attack and its carriers are still being in progress until people who are responsible for the attack are captured and punished.

Later on Friday, the Egyptian Air Force announced that it pursued the perpetrators, destroying a number of pickups used in the atrocity and killing the “terrorists” on board.

Other “terrorist hotbeds” were also discovered and targeted in cooperation between the Air Force and forces on the ground.

A number of entities decried the attack; Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church, presided over by Pope Tawadros II, condemned the “brutal” terrorist attack.

“Egypt, with its grandeur, and long standing civilization will be eventually able to ward off such unprecedented terrorism, and Egypt will remain a strong fortress in the face of it,” the statement said. “We regretfully mourn the loss of the martyrs of our nation and our hearts go out to the families of those who are victims of this despicable tragedy while praying for a swift recovery to those who have been injured.”

For his part, Undersecretary of Al-Azhar, Abbas Shoman, emphasized that the Friday attack on the mosque is clear evidence that terrorism must not be associated with Islam and that those criminals are distant from the crux of Islam.

“If Islam is not represented by the mosque, then where else it can be found?” Shoman further denounced, adding that they must stop hiding behind the cloak of Islam.

Moreover, Grand Mufti of Egypt Shawki Allam said that the perpetrators of such deeds must be murdered or crucified; contending that the killing of innocents amounts to committing a “disobedience to Allah and spreading mischief in the land.”

Ahlmad el-Tayyeb, grand Imam of Al-Azhar and chairman of the Muslim Council of Elders, also condemned the attack on a TV statement and asserted that Al-Azhar calls the whole world to stand with Egypt in its war against terrorism.

As for international condemnations regarding the attack, the EU’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, condemned the terrorist attack in a statement.

The EU statement that Egypt has been hit by a number of attacks against places of worship of all faiths over the last years, as no one should be killed because of their religion.

“I want to send, on behalf of the EU, my heartfelt condolences to the victims, their families and the Egyptian people,” Mogherini added.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker also issued statement condemning the attack. “It was with great horror and sadness that I learnt of the tragic attack on the Rawdah Mosque in Sinai. I would like to offer my most sincere condolences to the people of Egypt and to President al-Sisi,” Juncker stated.

He added that he condemns the barbaric and cowardly act in the strongest possible terms, as it targeted peaceful and innocent people in their place of worship. “Europe stands beside you in solidarity, just as you have stood with us in the past. You can count on our support,” Juncker added in his statement.

The White House condemned also condemned the attack calling on the international community to step up efforts to eliminate terrorism worldwide.

“There can be no tolerance for barbaric groups that claim to act in the name of a faith but attack houses of worship and murder the innocent and defenseless while at prayer,” read the statement.

U.S. President Donald Trump described the attack as a “horrible and cowardly terrorist attack on innocent and defenseless worshipers,” adding that the world cannot tolerate terrorism.

“We must defeat them militarily and discredit the extremist ideology that forms the basis of their existence,” Trump tweeted.

President Sisi, later on Friday, received a phone call from Trump, who offered the sincere condolences of the United States for the victims of the abhorrent terrorist attack.

During the phone call, Trump affirmed the full solidarity of the US with Egypt in its war against terrorism and its support and readiness to enhance cooperation with Egypt in this field.

President Sisi affirmed that this attack increases the determination of the Egyptian people to continue their battle against terrorism. He also stressed the importance of concerted international efforts to combat all forms of terrorism and root it out.

French President Emanuel Macron expressed France’s sincere condolences over the terror attack over a phone call to President Sisi.

The official spokesman for the presidency, Bassam Radi, said that the French president affirmed his country’s full solidarity with Egypt, pointing out France’s keenness to intensify cooperation with Egypt to combat terrorism.

The United Arab Emirates UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash also condemned the attack and affirmed that it brings about the necessity of understanding the relation between extremism and terrorism. He clarified that in order to eliminate terrorism, extremism must be fought.

Presidents of various countries, including Hungary, Lebanon, Jordan and Yemen, sent cables of condolences to President Sisi over the attack and expressed support for all measures taken by the country to eliminate terrorism.

Source: http://www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/34050/WRAP-UP-Arish-attack-strongly-condemned-accents-war-on-terrorism

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Dozens were injured and killed in Sinai during one of the country’s deadliest attacks in recent memory, state media and eyewitnesses said.

Eyewitnesses reported ambulances ferrying casualties from the scene to nearby hospitals after the Al Rawdah mosque in Bir al-Abed, west of Arish city, was targeted.

Witnesses said bomb explosion ripped through the Rawda mosque as worshippers gathered for weekly Friday prayers.

At least a further 109 people were wounded in the attack, which is unprecedented in a four-year insurgency by Islamist extremist groups.

President Abdel Fattah al Sisi convened an emergency security meeting soon after the attack, state television reported.

Government officials have announced three days mourning.

The Islamic State group’s Egypt branch has killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers, and also civilians accused of working with the authorities, in attacks in the north of the Sinai peninsula, over the years.

They have also targeted followers of the mystical Sufi branch of Sunni Islam as well as Christians.

The victims today included civilians and conscripts praying at the mosque.

A tribal leader and head of a Bedouin militia that fights IS said that the mosque is known as a place of gathering for Sufis.

The Islamic State group shares the puritan Salafi view of Sufis as heretics for seeking the intercession of saints.

The jihadists had previously kidnapped and beheaded an elderly Sufi leader, accusing him of practising magic which Islam forbids, and abducted Sufi practitioners later released after ‘repenting.’

The group has killed more than 100 Christians in church bombings and shootings in Sinai and other parts of Egypt, forcing many to flee the peninsula.

The military has struggled to quell the jihadists who pledged allegiance to IS in November 2014.

Source: http://metro.co.uk/2017/11/24/at-least-155-dead-and-80-injured-as-bomb-rips-through-mosque-in-egypt-7105847/

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