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Libyan parliament speaker claims maritime deal with Turkey invalid but open to renegotiation
House of Representatives Speaker Aguila Saleh has declared the 2019 Libya-Turkey maritime agreement illegitimate, arguing that it lacked parliamentary ratification and was concluded amid Libya’s unresolved civil conflict. The deal, signed after Turkey’s military intervention on behalf of the Tripoli-based government, expanded Ankara’s maritime claims in the eastern Mediterranean and provoked sharp opposition from Greece, Egypt, and the European Union. Saleh’s call for multilateral negotiations—including Greece, Egypt, and Turkey—underscores Libya’s continued fragmentation and signals a potential challenge to Ankara’s long-term military and energy ambitions in the region.
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Israeli defense minister declares ‘war’ on drones smuggling weapons from Egypt
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the border with Egypt to become a closed military zone following the detection of arms and drug smuggling by drones. Nearly 900 incidents of smuggling from Egyptian territory have reportedly happened in three months.
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Israel sends delegation to Egypt for ceasefire talks
An Israeli delegation traveled to Sharm el Sheikh on October 6 to begin talks aimed at ending the war in Gaza. US President Donald Trump announced on October 3 that Hamas had agreed to the 20-point Gaza peace plan he had announced on September 29. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said pressure must continue on Hamas to get the group to release the 48 hostages held in Gaza. Hamas has indicated that the talks in Egypt may take several days, and Trump has urged all parties to “move fast” to finalize the deal.
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Egypt cracks down on Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated HASM terror organization amid resurgence
Egyptian security forces killed two suspected members of Harakat Sawaid Misr (HASM) in a shootout in Giza on July 20. The raid follows a new HASM propaganda video threatening fresh attacks, along with calls from affiliated regional leaders for “armed and revolutionary activism.”
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Muslim Brotherhood branch in Egypt threatens Jordanian state
The “Change Movement” in Egypt called for supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan to resist the Jordanian state after authorities banned the group on April 23.
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Former HTS fighter Ahmad Hammad al Mansour reportedly detained in Syria after threatening Egyptian president
Ahmad al Mansour, an Egyptian national and former member of Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) in Syria, has reportedly been detained in Syria after threatening Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el Sisi. The Islamist militant is an Egyptian Naval Academy graduate with ties to the 2011 Egyptian revolution. Mansour left Egypt for Syria in 2013, where he joined Islamist rebel factions before aligning with HTS.
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Al-Qaeda’s general command lauds attacks against Jews, commends anti-Israel protests on Western campuses
Al-Qaeda’s central leadership has released a statement lauding attacks against Jewish targets and recognizing the anti-Israel protests in Western countries and universities.
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Armed group in the Sinai declares it will fight Israel
A new Sinai-based organization calling itself Kataib al-Farouq calls for attacks against Israel.
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New Jersey man arrested for attempting to join Shabaab, inspired by support of Hamas
The man reportedly traveled from Egypt to Kenya, where he planned to use Shabaab facilitators to cross into Somalia. The American citizen was motivated by his support of Hamas and desire to target the U.S. for its support of Israel.
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U.S. forms coalition to counter Houthi threat on international shipping; Houthis appear undeterred
The U.S. announces the formation of Operation Prosperity Guardian as Houthi attacks have ground international shipping transiting the Red Sea through the Suez Canal to a halt as multiple shippers are now bypassing the dangerous waterway. It is unclear if the operation will be offensive or defensive in nature.
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Militant groups in Gaza return to “popular tools” to pressure Israeli and Egyptian governments
Militants restart their low-tech campaign of violence at the Gaza border.
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The ISIS insurgency in the Sinai continues despite Egyptian Army efforts
Islamic State attacks in the Sinai persist despite Egyptian military operations against it.
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Former Egyptian officer turned al Qaeda loyalist reportedly captured in Libya
The Libyan National Army (LNA) claims to have captured Hisham al-Ashmawy, a former Egyptian officer who defected to the jihadists’ cause. Ashmawy has been accused of orchestrating jihadist operations in both Egypt and Libya. The Egyptian government alleges that he has been involved in a series of terrorist attacks targeting officials.
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US designates Egypt-based HASM and Liwa al-Thawra as terrorist groups
Harakat Sawa’id Misr (HASM) and Liwa al-Thawra are Islamist groups are suspected of having ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. The two groups have targeted Egyptian police, military forces, and government officials.
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Coptic church attacked by Islamic State loyalist, group says
The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for an attack outside of a Coptic Church in a southern suburb of Cairo earlier today. The assault is one in a series of operations targeting Coptic Christians in Egypt since 2016.
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More than 20 Egyptian soldiers killed in Islamic State assault on Sinai outpost
The Islamic State’s so-called Sinai province launched a lethal assault on an Egyptian military outpost in the northern Sinai earlier today. It may be the deadliest attack on Egyptian forces in the peninsula since July 1, 2015. More than 20 soldiers, including several officers, were reportedly killed.
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Islamic State claims attack on bus carrying Coptic Christians in Egypt
The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for yesterday’s massacre of at least 28 Coptic Christians traveling on a bus in Minya, Egypt. The group’s arms in both the Sinai and mainland Egypt have repeatedly targeted Copts. The Egyptian government has retaliated by bombing suspected training camps in Libya.
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Islamic State leader in Egypt says church bombings aren’t popular
The ninth issue of the Islamic State’s Rumiyah (“Rome”) magazine features an interview with the group’s “emir” in Egypt. He concedes that the jihadists’ church bombings and ideology are not popular inside Egypt. Regardless, Rumiyah attempts to justify the Islamic State’s anti-Christian terror.
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Islamic State fighters fire at Egyptian policemen near Saint Catherine’s Monastery
Islamic State gunmen shot and killed at least one Egyptian policeman near the Saint Catherine’s Monastery in the southern Sinai late yesterday. Several others were reportedly wounded. The group’s Sinai “province” is waging a low-grade insurgency against the Egyptian government and claims to have executed scores of attacks this year.
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Islamic State claims church bombings in Egypt
The Islamic State has claimed credit for bombings at two Coptic churches in the Egyptian cities of Tanta and Alexandria earlier today. The attacks killed dozens of people and wounded approximately 100 others. The so-called caliphate has a history of targeting Christians in Iraq, Egypt and Libya.
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Islamic State claims Cairo church bombing part of its ‘war on polytheism’
The Islamic State threatened further attacks in its “war on polytheism,” meaning against Christians and Jews, in Egypt and elsewhere. The group and its predecessor, the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), have assaulted Coptic Christians in the past.
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Zawahiri compares members of the Muslim Brotherhood to chickens
Al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri blasts the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood in a newly-released audio message, saying the organization has adopted secular ways.
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Former Egyptian special forces officer calls on scholars to support al Qaeda’s jihad
Hisham Ali Ashmawi, also known as Abu Umar al Muhajir, released an audio message earlier this month calling on Egyptian scholars to support jihadists in their fight against President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s government. Ashmawi, a former Egyptian special forces officer, leads an al Qaeda-linked group named Al Murabitoon.
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US transfers Egyptian Guantanamo detainee who became a ‘highly prolific source’
Tariq Mahmoud Ahmed Al Sawah, an Egyptian held at Guantanamo since 2002, has been transferred to the Government of Bosnia. Despite compiling a lengthy dossier as an expert bomb maker on behalf of al Qaeda, US officials recommended that he be transferred. Al Sawah became a prolific source on al Qaeda and other detainees during his time in custody, and Joint Task Force – Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO) concluded that his fellow jihadists may seek retribution if he tried to rejoin their ranks.
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Islamic State ‘province’ bombs hotel in the Sinai
The Islamic State’s Sinai “province” claimed responsibility for a bombing at a hotel in the Sinai earlier today. The group continues to run a prolific insurgency and has proven it is capable of committing mass casualty terrorist attacks against civilians as well.
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Conflicting claims still surround Russian airliner crash
The Islamic State’s so-called Sinai “province” has issued at least three official claims of responsibility in the downing of a Russian airliner. The group has not explained how it allegedly brought down the jet, however. Egyptian officials dismiss the claims as “propaganda.” America’s top intelligence official has said a terrorist attack is “unlikely,” but possible.
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Al Qaeda chief calls for jihadist unity to ‘liberate Jerusalem’
In a newly released audio message, Ayman al Zawahiri calls for unity to “liberate” Jerusalem. Zawahiri argues that the jihadists must strike the West and build Islamic states in the Levant and Egypt in order to achieve this goal.
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Former Egyptian special forces officer leads Al Murabitoon
A group called Al Murabitoon has released a video featuring its emir, a former Egyptian special forces named Hisham Ali Ashmawi. He is wanted for a string of attacks in Egypt, including the assassination of Egypt’s chief prosecutor in late June. Al Murabitoon makes its loyalty to al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri clear in the video.
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Islamic State strikes Egyptian naval vessel off Sinai coast
The Islamic State released photographs purporting to show a “frigate” being struck by a guided rocket launched from the coast near Rafah. The Egyptian military said a coast guard vessel was hit during a firefight with “terrorists.” The Islamic State’s Sinai province has used Kornet anti-tank rockets as recently as two weeks ago.
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Islamic State detonates car bomb outside Italian consulate in Cairo
The attack, which comes after coordinated assaults in the Sinai earlier this month, was claimed by the “Islamic State in Egypt” and not its “Sinai Province.” The Islamic State warned Muslims to avoid similar locations as they are “legitimate targets.”
