![Vehicles belonging to Sinai tribesmen were set on fire by the 'Islamic State of Iraq and Syria' in response to the tribesmen's co-operation with the army. [Al-Mashareq]](/cnmi_am/images/2017/09/18/9653-Egypt-Sinai-ISIS-700_496.webp)
"Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) elements in Sinai are setting fire to the vehicles of residents and tribesmen who co-operate with the Egyptian army "in an act of desperation", experts tell Al-Mashareq.
The move came after the army tightened the noose on the group, cut its supply routes and killed many of its elements in co-operation with tribesmen.
The ISIS-affiliated Muta news agency on Sunday (September 17th) posted photos of three burnt vehicles which it said belonged to Sinai tribesmen.
The vehicles were set on fire by ISIS in response to the tribesmen's co-operation with the army, it said.
The group has adopted this method for the first time -- after it used to exact revenge against tribesmen by kidnapping and killing their children -- due to its inability to reach villages and towns secured by the army, military experts said.
ISIS distributed a leaflet in Sinai, which Al-Mashareq obtained a copy of, in which it said the three vehicles were burnt because their owners work at a cement factory owned by the armed forces.
The leaflet contained a warning for all those who work or co-operate with the army.
Incident ignites backlash
The incident has sparked angry reactions from Sinai residents who expressed their resentment on social media.
Um Sinai Facebook page has criticised the group’s move.
"This is now threatening the people of Sinai's own livelihoods and may expose them to unemployment and financial difficulties," the page said.
The leaflet did not contain any information on the identity of the vehicle owners, but some Sinai residents have indicated on social media that they belong to al-Tarabeen tribesmen who are taking part with the armed forces in their war against ISIS.
"What ISIS affiliate Wilayat Sinai has done is an indicator of its weakness and confirms that it is suffering under the siege and crackdown by the army," said military expert Maj. Gen. Mokhtar Qandeel.
"The group has been accustomed to kidnapping and killing the people of Sinai who collaborate with the army against its elements," he told Al-Mashareq.
"The army is now securing the towns and villages of Sinai in such a way that it is making them unaccessible to ISIS elements," he added.
The co-operation of Sinai tribesmen with the army has inflicted heavy losses on the group and has enabled the army to carry out successful raids against its elements," he said.
