Egypt: Authorities hang 15 militants December 26

Event

On Tuesday, December 26, Egyptian authorities hanged 15 militants convicted of attacking and killing Egyptian police and army forces in the Sinai Peninsula. According to Egyptian authorities, the militants were hanged at Borj al-Arab and Wadi al-Natroun prisons early on Tuesday (local time). Additional militant attacks on Egyptian security forces and associated raids by security forces on militant positions are possible in the Sinai Peninsula in the coming weeks.

Context

Egyptian authorities' execution of 15 convicted militants on December 26 represents the most such executions carried out on a single day during Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's tenure. Egypt remains under a state of emergency, originally declared following Islamic State (IS) attacks on churches in Alexandria and Tanta, which killed at least 47 people on Palm Sunday in April 2017.

The Sinai Peninsula has been the epicenter of frequent attacks by IS-affiliated militants since 2013 - usually targeting security forces or minority Coptic Christians. On November 29, Al-Sisi ordered the Egyptian military to stabilize the restive Sinai Peninsula within three months, telling security forces to use "all brute force necessary" to restore security in the region.

Advice

Due to the prevailing threat of terrorism, individuals throughout Egypt should report any suspicious objects or behavior to the authorities and always be on guard when visiting sites deemed particularly vulnerable to an attack (public transportation, train stations, ports, airports, public or government buildings, embassies or consulates, international organizations, schools and universities, religious sites, markets, hotels and restaurants frequented by foreigners/Westerners, festivals, etc.). Some governments advise their nationals against all travel to the Sinai Peninsula due to the persistent terrorist threat.​