Egypt's Cyber War Against The Islamic State In The Sinai Is Jamming The Cellular Networks In Southern Israel And Gaza

A member of Egypt's security forces gestures as he stands on a watchtower in North Sinai as seen from across the border in southern Israel July 2, 2015 [Amir Cohen/Reuters]

Jerusalem Post: IDF: Egyptian cyber warfare in Sinai causing cell disruptions in south Israel

The IDF says it is "not surprised" by the electronic warfare component of the military operation.

The Egyptian army's use of cyber warfare against Islamic State militants in northern Sinai has caused cellular blackouts across southern Israel, the IDF confirmed Wednesday.

While the disruptions, which have ensued for two weeks, will likely continue, the defense establishment “is dealing with the issue with their Egyptian counterparts," according to the IDF Spokesperson's Unit. "We have a dialogue with them on the issue.”

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More News On How Egypt's Cyber War Against The Islamic State In The Sinai Is Jamming The Cellular Networks In Southern Israel And Gaza

Egypt's Cyber-ops Against ISIS Jams Israeli Cellular Networks -- Haaretz
Israel hints that Sinai fighting caused cellphone disruption -- The Times of Israel
Egyptian Jamming of Sinai Insurgents Disrupts Phones in Israel, Gaza -- Algemeiner
Sinai operation jams mobile phone signal in Gaza -- Al Jazeera
Israel says Egypt's cyberwar against IS causes cellular blackouts -- Xinhua

Egypt Intensifies Military Campaign Against The Islamic State In the Sinai

Al Jazeera: Egypt says air raids kill 19 ISIL fighters in Sinai

Three leaders were among 19 members of Sinai Province group who were killed in air raids, Egyptian military says.

Air raids in northern Sinai have killed 19 members of Egypt's ISIL affiliate, including three of its leaders, according to the Egyptian military.

There was no immediate comment from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in response to the Egyptian army's claim.

The military said in a statement on its official Facebook page on Thursday that the raids were directed at Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, a Sinai-based group that has been blamed for the killing of hundreds of Egyptian soldiers and police.

The group pledged allegiance to ISIL, also known as ISIS, in 2014 and adopted the name Sinai Province.

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More News On The Growing Violence In The Sinai

Egypt army says kills 19 Islamic extremists in north Sinai -- AP
Egypt Killed 19 Islamic State Militants in Sinai, Army Says -- Bloomberg
Egypt Army Says ISIS Leaders Killed in Sinai Air Strikes -- Asharq Al-awsat
19 extremists killed, vehicles destroyed in North Sinai: military spokesperson -- Egypt independent
Egypt says air strikes kill ISIS leaders in Sinai -- Jerusalem Post
One policeman killed, civilian injured in IED blast in Egypt's North Sinai -- Ahram Online
ISIS claims deadly attack near Egypt’s St. Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai -- Al Arabiya/Reuters
Gunmen Attack Popular Religious Tourism Site In Sinai -- NPR
PM imposes curfew in some parts of Sinai -- Egypt Independent
Egypt's PM Sherif Ismail extends state of emergency in designated areas of North Sinai -- Ahram Online
Islamic State in the Sinai: a new base after Mosul? -- Farid Farid, Sydney Morning Herald

Sinai Fighting Has Killed 12 Egyptian Soldiers And 15 ISIS Fighters

Egyptian Army soldiers patrol in an armored vehicle backed by a helicopter gunship during a sweep through villages in Sheikh Zuweyid, North Sinai (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters: A dozen Egyptian security personnel killed in Sinai fighting

Ten members of Egypt's military were killed when their vehicles were hit by two improvised bombs during an operation against suspected militants in the Sinai peninsula, the military said on Thursday.

Three officers and seven soldiers were killed, the military said in a statement, adding that its forces killed 15 people and arrested seven others during the raid which it said targeted "highly dangerous terrorists" in the central Sinai area.

Two policemen, an officer and a conscript, were later killed in fighting near a police station in Arish, the capital of North Sinai province the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

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More News On Today's Fighting In Sinai

Egypt says fighting in central Sinai leaves 10 soldiers dead -- AP
10 Egyptian soldiers killed in Sinai roadside bombings -- AFP
Roadside bombings kill 10 Egypt soldiers during Sinai raid -- BBC
Egyptian soldiers killed by roadside bombs in central Sinai: military -- DW
Ten Egyptian soldiers killed in Sinai -- UPI
Roadside bombs kill 10 Egyptian soldiers -- Al Jazeera
Three army officers, seven soldiers killed in militant hideout raid in Central Sinai -- Ahram Online

Atrocities By Jihadists Continue Against Christians In Egypt's Northern Sinai

CBN: Atrocities Continue against Christians in Egypt's Northern Sinai

ISIS jihadists continue targeting Christians in Egypt's volatile Northern Sinai region, resulting in brutal murders.

Two men who were abducted by the group have been found dead. Egyptian officials said one of the slain men had his eyes plucked out and was set on fire before being shot to death.

Christian families are fleeing the region in droves. At least 100 families left last Friday after ISIS released a video saying they "will kill every infidel" and that Christians are their "favorite" target.

Women are being threatened if they don't wear the Islamic body-covering and farmers are being forced to give money to the group under the guise they are paying a "zakat," a mandatory Islamic donation to charity.

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WNU Editor: Sadly .... there is a lot of truth to this report .... IS Militants in North Sinai Showing Their Strength (VOA).

More News On The Christian Exodus From Sinai

Egypt's Christians flee terror in north Sinai security void -- AP
More Egypt Copts flee jihadists in Sinai -- AFP
More than 100 Christian families escape Sinai after chilling ISIS threat -- FOX News/WSJ
Sinai Terror triangle: Christians under attack -- Middle East Eye
Over 100 Families of Egyptian Christians Fled Sinai From Extremists – Archpriest -- Sputnik
Isis attacks drive Egyptian Christians from Sinai city -- Financial Times
'I spent the night at my Muslim friends'': Christians flee Islamic State in Sinai -- Sydney Morning Herald

Egyptian Copts Flee Sinai After Being Targeted By Islamic State Attacks

Image of Daesh militants in Sinai [file photo]

Naharnet: Copts Flee Sinai after Suspected Islamic State Attacks

Dozens of Coptic Christians have left Egypt's Sinai Peninsula after a string of jihadist attacks killed three Christians in the restive province, church officials said.

On Thursday, suspected Islamic State jihadists killed a member of the minority in the North Sinai city of El-Arish and set his house on fire.

About 250 Christians took refuge in the Evangelical Church in the Suez Canal city of Ismailiya, said church deacon and administrator Nabil Shukrallah.

"They've come running with their children. It's a very difficult situation. We're expecting 50 or 60 more," he told AFP.

Other church officials said they have also received Copts fleeing the peninsula.

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More News On Egyptian Copts Fleeing Sinai After Being Targeted By The Islamic State

Egypt Christians flee Sinai after a spate of attacks -- AP
ISIS Egypt affiliate: Christians are our 'favorite prey' -- FOX News
ISIS vows more attacks on Egypt’s Christians -- Catholic Herald
Sixth Christian killed in Egypt’s Sinai in a month -- Middle East Monitor
Egyptian Coptic Christian killed, house torched -- AFP
Christian father is shot dead and his son is burned alive in Egyptian ISIS hotbed days after the group vowed Christians were its 'favourite prey' -- Daily Mail
Egypt: Coptic Christian killed in his House in North Sinai -- Middle East Confidential

Egypt's President Is Predicting A Long War Against Sinai Militants

Reuters: Egypt retaliates against Islamist militants after North Sinai attack

Egyptian jets bombed Islamist militant targets for three hours on Saturday, one day after Islamic State guerrillas killed 12 soldiers in North Sinai province, the armed forces said in a statement.

Islamic State claimed responsibility on Friday for the attack on a checkpoint 40 km (25 miles) from the town of Bir al-Abd. It was the first major attack in the central Sinai area, which had so far escaped the militants' insurgency.

"A targeted air strike, which lasted for three hours, resulted in the destruction of the areas ... that harbored terrorists, as well as locations for assembling weapons and ammunition," the statement said, adding that the operation was continuing.

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Update: Egypt Retaliates After Losing 12 Soldiers, Kills Over 100 Militants in Sinai (Haaretz/AP)

WNU editor: The Egyptian President is correct in making this assessment .... Egypt's President Predicts Long War Against Sinai Militants (AP).

Suspected Islamic State Militants Attack And Kill 12 Egyptian Soldiers At A Sinai Checkpoint

CNN: Egyptian troops killed in security checkpoint attack in Sinai

(CNN)An attack by "armed terrorists" on a security checkpoint in the northern half of the Sinai Peninsula on Friday has left a dozen military personnel dead, according to Egypt's military. Fifteen terrorists also died in the attack.

The assailants attacked the checkpoint using four-wheel drive vehicles, the military said in a statement. Egyptian military officials are sweeping the area for remains of the militant group.

This is the latest attack in a battle for control over the Sinai Peninsula between Islamist militants and the Egyptian military. The militants have been waging an insurgency against the military since the army toppled President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood in 2013.

In August, the Egyptian military said it had killed the leader of Sinai Province, along with dozens of its fighters.

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More News On Suspected Islamic State Militant Attack That Killed 12 Egyptian Soldiers At A Sinai Checkpoint

Egypt: 'IS militants' kill 12 soldiers in Sinai peninsula -- BBC
Suspected Islamic State attack kills 12 Egyptian soldiers in Sinai -- Washington Post
Islamic State Militants Kill 12 Egyptian Soldiers in Sinai -- WSJ
A dozen Egyptian troops killed in checkpoint attack -- Al Jazeera
Islamic State kills 12 military personnel in Egypt's Sinai -- Reuters
Suspected IS militants kill 12 Egyptian soldiers in Sinai province -- DW
ISIS Attacks Egypt: Islamic State Group Kills 12 Egyptian Security Force Officers At Checkpoint -- International Business Times
Egypt's Sisi mourns soldiers killed in North Sinai attack -- Ahram Online

Egyptian Air Strike Has Killed The Islamic State Leader In Sinai

Nov. 1, 2015: Military investigators from Russia stand near the debris of a Russian airliner at the site of its crash at the Hassana area in Arish city, northern Egypt. (Reuters)

BBC: Egypt 'kills head of Islamic State's Sinai branch'

The Egyptian military says it has killed the head of the Sinai branch of so-called Islamic State (IS), along with dozens of its fighters.

It said Abu Duaa al-Ansari was killed in a series of air strikes on fighters of the Sinai Province - or Ansar Beit al-Maqdis - group.

The air strikes targeted jihadist strongholds near the town of El-Arish.

Sinai Province is Egypt's most active insurgent group and has been linked to deadly attacks in Sinai and Cairo.

The Egyptian military said: "The raids left more than 45 terrorists killed, dozens of others injured and several arms caches destroyed."

Brig-Gen Mohammed Samir said in a posting on Facebook that Ansari was killed in an operation guided by "accurate intelligence".

The posting did not say when the operation was carried out.

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More News On The Report From The Egyptian Military That An Air Strike Killed The Islamic State Leader In Sinai

Egypt says army killed head of ISIL's Sinai branch -- Al Jazeera
Egypt military says killed leader of Islamic State in Sinai -- Reuters
Egypt air strike kills IS head of Sinai: army - AFP
Egypt: Leader of Islamic State affiliate killed in Sinai -- AP
Leader of ISIS in Egypt's Sinai killed by air force, sources confirm -- FOX News
Egypt Says It Has Killed Head of Islamic State Affiliate -- WSJ
IS leader ‘who downed Russian plane’ killed -- News.com.au

Top U.S. General: Egypt Is Waging War Against 1,000 ISIS Fighters In The Sinai

An image posted to social media purportedly shows militants of the ISIS affiliate in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. Al Arabiya

VOA: Egypt's Military Battling IS in Sinai, US General Says

Egypt’s military is carrying out operations against Islamic State fighters in the Sinai Peninsula, according to the top U.S. general.

“The Egyptians are taking the fight to the Islamic State right now,” General Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a small group of reporters Thursday aboard a military aircraft en route from Brussels to the United States.

Dunford said he was looking forward to hearing the results of Egypt’s operations in the Sinai upon landing. He was unable to provide further details.

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WNU Editor: The Israelis are nervous on where this conflict is heading .... Rocket sirens blare in south as Sinai fighting heats up (Times of Israel).

Islamic State Launches Deadly Attack Near Cairo

CNN: Gunmen kill 8 police officers in Egypt

Cairo (CNN)Four gunmen killed eight police officers dressed in plainclothes south of Cairo on Sunday, authorities said.

The officers were traveling in a government minivan and conducting security checks in Helwan district when they were attacked, the Egyptian Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The gunmen shot and killed all of the officers before escaping, the statement said.

ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted by a supporter of the terror group.

It described the attackers as a "security unit of the caliphate soldiers" and said they have safely returned to their positions.

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WNU Editor: It looks like the Islamic State's war against the Egyptian government is spreading from the Sinai to the capital itself.

More News On Today's Deadly Islamic State Attack Near Cairo

Eight policemen killed in Cairo's Helwan by unknown gunmen -- Ahram Online
Gunmen kill 8 police in Cairo suburb, Islamic State claims attack -- Reuters
Deadly gun assault on Egyptian police in Cairo suburb -- DW
Militants Kill 8 Egyptian Police in Cairo Suburb -- AP
Gunmen Kill Eight Egyptian Police in Ambush South of Cairo -- Bloomberg
Egyptian policemen killed in ambush south of Cairo -- BBC
ISIS Claims Responsibility for Deadly Drive-By Shooting of Police in Cairo’s Helwan -- Egyptian Streets
ISIS Claims Responsibility For Attack That Killed 8 Policemen Near Cairo -- IBTimes

Egypt Is Intensifying Its Ground And Air Campaign Against Militants In The Sinai

An Egyptian Air Force fighter jet (screen capture: YouTube)

Times of Israel: Up to 60 IS militants said killed in Sinai airstrikes

Egypt intensifies ground and air campaign to root out extremists affiliated with the Islamic State group

Airstrikes launched by the Egyptian air force Saturday killed dozens of fighters from a local affiliate of the radical Islamic State in restive north Sinai, local media reported.

The attack, which was conducted by Apache helicopters, targeted installations belonging to the Wilayat Sinaa terror group around the town of Sheikh Zuwaid, which has long been a hotbed for extremist elements, the reports said.

WNU Editor: The Islamic State is responding to this Egyptian escalation .... ISIS Unveils Their Wookie Sniper Squad in the Sinai (PJ Media).

More News On Egypt's War Against ISIS In The Sinai

Egyptian Army Kills Over 40 Extremists in Northern Sinai -- Sputnik
Egypt warplanes kill over 40 Daesh terrorists in Sinai Peninsula -- Press TV
Suspected ‘terrorist’ convoy intercepted in Egypt’s Sinai region -- Al Bawaba
Military seizes 'terrorist cells' weaponry storage: spokesperson -- Egyptian Independent
Inside Egypt’s Blacked-Out War With ISIS-Affiliated Militants -- Time

Egyptian President Admits That His Country is In A 'Ferocious War'

WNU Editor: A sobering (and accurate assessment from the Egyptian President. The full AP interview and report with Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is at the link .... AP Interview: Egypt's leader says country in 'ferocious war' (AP).

Islamic State Claims To Have Destroyed An Egyptian Warship With A Missile Strike

Daily Mail: Terror on the high seas: Egyptian navy vessel erupts in huge fireball as ISIS carry out rocket strike on patrol ship in the Mediterranean

* Patrol ship spotted ISIS jihadis on the Sinai shoreline and fired at them
* The group of Islamic extremists returned fire using high-powered rockets
* At least one of the rockets struck the ship, causing it to burst into flames
* Several patrol workers suffered burn injuries, but there were no fatalities

Extremists loyal to the Islamic State in Egypt have attacked a naval patrol ship in the Mediterranean Sea, causing it to burst into flames.

The Egyptian military said earlier a coastguard vessel had exchanged shots with militants just two miles off the coast of northern Sinai, an area bordering Israel and the Gaza Strip.

There were no fatalities among the vessel's crew in the shootout with the terrorists, according to a Facebook message posted by military spokesman, Brigadier General Mohammed Samir.

ISIS declared their presence on Sinai - a peninsula popular with British holidaymakers - last November when up to 2,000 members of the already established jihadi group Ansar Bait al-Maqdis swore allegiance to ISIS' leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

WNU Editor: If they can hit a naval warship in the Mediterranean, they can hit a vessel using the Suez canal. If the Suez canal should ever be closed down because of militant strikes and.or the sinking of ships in the Suez canal .... the economic impact will be immediate and global.

More News On Today's Islamic State Attack On An Egyptian Naval Patrol Ship

Three stunning photos that show a suspected Islamic State attack on an Egyptian warship -- Washington Post
Egypt navy ship 'hit by Sinai militants' missile' -- BBC
Egyptian Navy Vessel Targeted by Militants Off Sinai's Coast -- NYT/AP
IS claims missile attack on Egypt navy boat -- AFP
Islamic State says it launched rocket attack on Egypt navy vessel -- Reuters
Isis affiliate claims responsibility for rocket attack on Egyptian navy ship -- The Guardian
Islamic State claims rocket attack on Egypt navy vessel left ablaze after shootout -- The Telegraph
ISIL claims rocket attack on Egypt navy boat in Mediterranean Sea -- Euronews
Islamic State affiliate Sinai Province claims attack on Egypt navy vessel -- Sydney Morning Herald
UPDATED: Egypt's Islamic State affiliate claims rocket attack on naval boat -- Ahram Online

Egypt Launches Ground Attack In Isis-Held Derna 'Capturing 55 Militants'

An armed motorcade belonging to members of Derna's Islamic Youth Council, consisting of former members of militias from the town of Derna, drive along a road in Derna, eastern Libya in October 2014(Reuters)

IBTimes: Libya: Egyptian troops launch ground attack in Isis-held Derna 'capturing 55 militants'

Egyptian special forces have allegedly launched a ground attack in Libya's Islamic State-held Derna capturing dozens of Islamist militants, according to Egyptian and Libyan reports.

Ansa news agency cited unnamed local sources as saying that an Egyptian commando stormed the eastern Libyan town, a stronghold of the Islamic State (Isis) there, "capturing 55 Daesh [IS] militants".

The Libyan National Army wrote on its Facebook page that Egyptian forces in coordination with the local army stormed IS camp in Derna, "killing a large number of IS militants and capturing several terrorists including Egyptians, foreigners and Arabs".

Update: Libya_ISIS News : Egyptian Special Forces launch ground attack in Isis-held Derna 'capturing 55 militants' -- LIVE Leak

WNU Editor: I suspect that there are going to be more Egyptian ground attacks in the near future.