Egypt General: Hamas ‘Terrorizing’ Egyptians

Accuses Hamas of Plotting to Help Ousted Govt

Egyptian Major General Osama Askar has claimed that the military has captured multiple missiles that it believes belong to Palestinian faction Hamas, and has accused the group of “terrorizing” Egyptians.

Hamas enjoyed relatively good relations with the elected government of Egypt, and in the days before the military coup, the military deployed significant military forces to the Gaza border to prevent Hamas infiltration.

Maj. Gen. Askar accused Hamas of plotting attacks to “help the Muslim Brotherhood against the Egyptian people,” part of a growing effort by the new junta to portray the ousted government as “terrorists” for not immediately endorsing a coup against them.

Blaming Hamas also ensures continued Israeli support for the military operations in Sinai. Israel has embraced the offensive so far, but there are growing concerns that the offensive will lead to spillover against Israeli territory, especially with any such offensives by necessity coming with an Israeli imprimatur.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.