Egypt continues to target extremist outposts along Libya border

Egyptian airstrikes continue to pound extremist outposts on the Libyan side of the border, as these bases have been used as staging points for attacks against Egypt, analysts told Al-Mashareq.

Egypt conducted airstrikes in Libya on May 26th and 27th in response to a May 26th terrorist attack that left at least 30 Coptic Christians dead.

The Egyptian military’s operations against terrorist camps in Libya are ongoing, a military spokesman said May 29th, following reports of a second wave of strikes on terrorist targets in the eastern Libyan city of Derna.

"It is clear that the new strategy adopted by the terrorist groups targeting Egypt calls for attacking civilians wherever they can reach them," said military analyst Maj. Gen. Abdul Karim Ahmed, a retired Egyptian officer.

Militants have been targeting Copts in an attempt to undermine Egypt's security by sowing strife between Muslims and Christians, he told Al-Mashareq.

They have begun staging attacks near the Libyan border as a direct result of the success of the Egyptian armed forces in targeting their training bases and attack launch points in northern Sinai, he said.

Desert and mountain passes

Egypt's border with Libya is very long and dotted with dozens of desert and mountain passages, Al-Sharq Centre for Regional and Strategic Studies researcher Sami Gheit told Al-Mashareq.

Terrorists can use these passes to infiltrate into Egypt and then return to their bases in Libya, he said, as it is impossible to control the entire length of the border due to the complex geography of the terrain.

Egyptian security forces have several bases along the border, he noted, chiefly in the town of Salloum on the Mediterranean coast and in the surrounding areas and inland hills.

Many of the known passes are now under the full control of the Egyptian army, Gheit said.

"There was co-operation between the security forces of the two countries in those areas, but due to the security situation in Libya [...] the terrorists have managed to establish relative control over those areas in co-operation with smugglers in the region," he explained.

Border is a strategic gateway

Military operations at the border with Libya are witnessing daily activity, said Lt. Col. Amin al-Zaini, an Egyptian police official attached to Interpol.

These include "direct clashes between terrorists trying to move between the two countries and Egyptian armed and border guard forces deployed at many points along the border", he told Al-Mashareq.

Additionally, border guard troops have stepped up their surveillance to prevent smuggling, which may be a major source of funding for terrorist groups, he said.

Al-Zaini said the borders are an escape route for fugitive terrorists wanted in Egypt, who attempt to cross over to Libya and from there to other countries.

Military operations carried out by Egyptian forces in Libya have been yielding "a treasure trove of intelligence", he said.

Special forces from the Egyptian army were parachuted in to terrorist camps near Derna in eastern Libya, where they killed and arrested dozens of militants and seized large numbers of documents, data and communication devices, he added.

"[These items] will greatly help uncover secret terrorist plans and expose supporters of those groups in Libya and Egypt," al-Zaini said.