IS in Sinai threatens Eilat port with attack 'in the coming days': Report
Group also threatens to 'begin operations against Hamas' and 'take control over the Strip'
Jihadists in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State have threatened to strike the port of Eilat "in the coming days," according to reports in Egyptian media.
The reports state the Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem), which changed its name to Welayat al-Sinai (Province of Sinai) "threatened to strike the Eilat Port, following coordination with Islamic State's wing in the Gaza Strip."
"IS will begin operations against Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip," the reports added, quoting Abu Othman Al-Mosley, one of the group's leaders.
Al-Mosley took to the group's Facebook page calling for new recruits to emigrate to the Peninsula and for the group's current members to "make their way to the Gaza Strip to fight against Hamas's military branch, the Ezzadin al-Qassam Brigades, and take control over the Strip."
AFPAFP"Fighters from IS affiliated Ansar Beit al-Maqdis"
Salafi groups began to surface in Gaza in 2006 and have had a tense relationship with Hamas, which seized the territory from forces loyal to the Western-backed Fatah group in 2007.
The tensions between the two terrorist groups in the coastal enclave began on May 3, when Hamas destroyed a mosque belonging to a group known as the "Supporters of the Islamic State in Jerusalem." The group responded by threatening to kill Hamas members – publishing some of their names and photos - unless Hamas releases several men, including a local Salafi sheikh.
A senior Israeli security official said it was hard to assess whether there was a serious IS presence in Gaza but "the fact is that Hamas is trying to curb them, and mainly because they are a threat to its rule."
In March, a senior IDF official said that Israel was "preparing for a multi-pronged terror threat directed against our forces and civilians in the Eilat area."
AFP GraphicAFP Graphic"Graphic locating Eilat on the border with Egypt"
Col. Arik Chen, deputy commander of Israel's Southern Division said that the "challenges are very complicated, because on the one hand you have here a peaceful border, and on the other hand a frontier area in Sinai has developed that enables terrorist groups to grow like Ansar Bayit al-Maqdis which became an IS affiliate. This organization, as we have seen recently, creates a number of terror attacks against the Egyptian army, and this is one of the more bothersome challenges which we are preparing for."
Meanwhile, the Israeli army launched a NIS 6 million project this week, aimed at strengthening the security of communities located in the western Negev Desert, in response to terrorist threats from the Sinai Peninsula and the smuggling incidents across the border.
The IDF, in retaliation, has begun the construction of engineering obstacles in the area of Pitchat Nitzana Regional Council, including a physical barrier and a tunnel to prevent the infiltration of vehicles, Israeli news site Ynet reported. The Israeli military has also constructed new outposts, in an attempt to strengthen the protection around the communities. Over the past month, Special Engineering Vehicles (TZAMA) units has also held training session.
AFPAFP"The border fence along Israel's border with Egypt near the Red Sea resort town of Eilat"
"If in the past, the smugglers had entered the communities of the Ramat Negev Regional Council after crossing the fence, in an almost unimpeded manner – the situation is now different," Avralinzi added.
"When you let a smuggler pass through, you invite hostile terrorist activity. The terrorist will use the same guide who led the smuggler. He knows the same route. There will be nine smuggling incidents and the tenth could be a hostile terrorist attack," the officer noted.
Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has spearheaded an insurgency in Egypt's restive Sinai Peninsula since the army overthrew Islamic president Mohammed Morsi.