CAIRO: Egypt’s military spokesperson on Sunday denied a recent New York Times report claiming that Israeli air forces have conducted air strikes against Daesh targets in North Sinai with Egyptian approval.
Military spokesperson Tamer El-Refaai told Egypt Independent the NYT report claiming that Israel launched air strikes against Daesh stationing points in North Sinai are “inaccurate” and “not credible.”
The NYT report claimed that “unmarked Israeli drones, helicopters and jets” have carried “more than 100” aerial strikes inside Egypt against Daesh “over the past two years”.
It claimed that the airstrikes have been conducted “with the approval of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.”
The spokesperson stressed that the Egyptian army is the only entity carrying out military operations in North Sinai, in cooperation with Egyptian police forces.
He also called on media outlets to “investigate the accuracy of what is being published”.
Egyptian military denies New York Times report on Israeli airstrikes in North Sinai
Egyptian military denies New York Times report on Israeli airstrikes in North Sinai
Israeli foreign minister visiting Somaliland, sources say
- Territory lies in northwestern Somalia along strategic Gulf of Aden and shares land borders with Ethiopia and Djibouti
- Netanyahu has said Israel would pursue cooperation with Somaliland in agriculture, health, technology, and has invited Somaliland’s president to visit Israel
NAIROBI/JERUSALEM: Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar visited Somaliland, the breakaway region of Somalia, on Tuesday, two sources told Reuters, 10 days after Israel formally recognized the self-declared Republic of Somaliland as an independent state.
One of the sources, a senior Somaliland official, said Saar would meet Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi to discuss ways to enhance bilateral ties. The second source confirmed the Israeli minister’s presence in Somaliland.
The Israeli foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Saar was in Somaliland.
Israel formally recognized Somaliland as a sovereign state on December 27, a move that drew criticism from Somalia, which has long opposed Somaliland’s efforts to secede. No other country has formally recognized Somaliland.
At the time, Abdullahi said Somaliland would join the Abraham Accords, a deal brokered by the Trump administration in 2020 that saw Gulf states the United Arab Emirates — a close partner of Somaliland — and Bahrain establish ties with Israel.
Somaliland, once a British protectorate, has for decades sought formal recognition as an independent state, though it has signed bilateral agreements with various foreign governments on investments and security coordination.
The territory lies in northwestern Somalia along the strategic Gulf of Aden and shares land borders with Ethiopia and Djibouti.
Israel’s decision to recognize Somaliland follows two years of increasingly strained ties with many of its closest partners over the war in Gaza and policies in the West Bank.
Strategic location
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel would pursue cooperation with Somaliland in agriculture, health, technology, and the economy, and has invited Somaliland’s president to visit Israel.
Somaliland sits across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen, where Iran-backed Houthis have launched long-range missile and drone attacks on Israel since October 2023, coinciding with the Gaza war.
Somaliland has denied that the recognition agreement allows for Israel to establish military bases there, or for the resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza. Israel’s government has advocated for what officials describe as voluntary Palestinian migration from Gaza.
