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Egypt’s Large Military Presence in Sinai Continues to Raise Questions

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. Photo: Russian Presidential Press and Information Office.
JNS.org – The considerable Egyptian military presence in the Sinai Peninsula and ongoing infrastructure work has some observers in Israel alarmed.
Officially, the Israeli defense establishment says that coordination between the two militaries remains tight and contributes to regional stability. However, the concentration of forces in Sinai is not easily explained by previous justifications such as fighting ISIS, and raises the more troubling, seldom spoken, possibility that President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and his army view Israel as a potential future adversary.
On Feb. 4, Kan News, citing the Beirut-based, Hezbollah-aligned Al Akhbar newspaper, said Egyptian sources revealed that Cairo “conveyed an explicit warning to Israel in the military coordination meetings that the continued stay of IDF forces in the Philadelphi Corridor [on Gaza’s border with Egypt] would be considered a violation of the Camp David [Peace] Agreement between Israel and Egypt, and that Egypt would not be obligated to the agreement in the ongoing coordination regarding the situation of its forces on the border.”
The same report stated that “the Egyptian sources emphasized that Egypt’s messages are based on the adherence of the Palestinian factions to the clauses of the ceasefire agreement, on Cairo’s refusal to create a new geographic reality, and on the Israeli claim that it is possible ‘to eliminate Hamas.’”
Israel’s defense establishment, for its part, pointed to longstanding cooperation mechanisms that remain in place despite the reports of tensions. Israeli defense sources have affirmed that security coordination between Cairo and Jerusalem was and remains tight, “as it has been for years,” adding that “the security coordination reflects the common security interest of both countries for regional stability and preserving national security.”
Egyptian troop deployments in Sinai grew over recent years, ostensibly to fight jihadist insurgents, but some observers in Israel have raised the possibility that such a substantial presence could become a strategic liability under changed circumstances.
Three airfields
Moshe Fuzaylov, a research associate at the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy and a former Shin Bet intelligence officer who served in senior roles in the organization, including as a member of its Executive Directorate, told JNS on Wednesday, “Israel approved for Egypt on different occasions to bring forces into Sinai [in excess of those permitted in the peace treaty], and we are today with a massive order of battle of the Egyptian Army in Sinai.”
Fuzaylov argued that Israel’s initial permissions stemmed from concerns over terror elements in the area, yet the resulting Egyptian buildup went far beyond a limited anti-jihadist counter-insurgency mission.
“They built in Sinai three airfields; at least one airfield is for fighter jets. They built huge reserves of gasoline and diesel,” he said. He added that Egypt also built large storage tunnels in Sinai for strategic storage of military gear, and transport links that could enable large formations to arrive in Sinai within a few hours.
Fuzaylov expressed concern that Israel’s defense establishment is not aware of the threat, adding, “We already understand what happens when we are so calm.”
On Oct. 6, 2022, marking the anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, el-Sisi said in a Facebook post that the conflict remains “proof of the will and steadfastness of the Egyptians and their adherence to the sovereignty and dignity of the nation.”
“The glorious October War will remain a turning point in our contemporary history, in which our armed forces restored the nation’s honor and pride and erased the stain of occupation from its lands,” he continued.
On Oct. 11, 2018, during remarks to commemorate the 1973 war, el-Sisi stated, according to a paper published that same month by Haisam Hassanein, a former research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, “The battle didn’t end. In the past, the enemy was obvious. Now, it is not. Now, they are with us and inside us. They were able to create an enemy inside us that survives by killing us. And gets built by our destruction.”
The Egyptian president continued, “A big part of the challenge is building our awareness. What I consider the main enemy is incomplete awareness, or fake awareness. It requires us—not only on the level of intellectuals, thinkers, and the media, but more than that—to be fully aware of the reality we are in.”
According to Fuzaylov, “Egypt has no reason to prepare such systems and insert these forces, unless it assumes that Israel is its primary threat scenario.”
Trains for one purpose
Mariam Wahba, a research analyst at the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS on Thursday, “For months now, reports have circulated about a significant Egyptian military buildup in Sinai, particularly near Rafah [on the Gaza border]. This movement isn’t necessarily abnormal—Egypt has previously deployed tanks and armored vehicles to combat ISIS, but these actions typically occur with Israeli consent and a notification to the United States, neither of which has reportedly happened this time.”
She added, “Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon recently raised concerns about this, saying that Egypt ‘trains for one purpose: war with Israel.’ If the reports are correct, it raises serious questions about Egypt’s intentions.
“The Egypt-Israel relationship has undoubtedly been strained by the war [against Hamas], but the enduring peace between the two nations has long served as a pillar of peace and stability in the region. As for the U.S.’s part in this, the White House should demand transparency from Cairo and press Egypt with the tough questions. This can serve as a key point of leverage for President Trump as he navigates a post-war plan for Gaza,” Wahba said.
Fuzaylov added that one of the factors that could have led President Donald Trump to announce on Tuesday an intention to create an American presence in Gaza is to create some sort of buffer between Egypt and Israel, and to signal to Cairo that the US is now involved in the area.
“President Trump understood this threat, mainly after October 7, [2023],” Fuzaylov argued.
On Jan. 31, Israeli envoy to the U.N. Danon voiced his own reservations.
“They spend hundreds of millions of dollars on modern military equipment every year, yet they have no threats on their borders,” he said, in reference to Egypt, questioning the rationale behind these massive acquisitions. “Why do they need all these submarines and tanks?” he asked, before warning, “After October 7, this should raise alarm bells.
“We have learned our lesson. We must monitor Egypt closely and prepare for every scenario,” Danon said.
The post Egypt’s Large Military Presence in Sinai Continues to Raise Questions first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War

Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests

A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan

Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.