Egypt

Egyptian Security Forces Kill 40 Islamist Militants After Bus Attack

Security forces for the Egyptian government have raided three Islamist militant hideouts and killed 40 of them in response to an attack on a tour bus near the tourist town of Giza where three Vietnamese tourists and their Egyptian guide were killed.

The three raids killed “40 terrorists” in Giza and North Sinai, the statement from the interior ministry said about the coordinating raids on terror cells.

“A group of terrorists were planning to carry out a series of aggressive attacks targeting state institutions, particularly economic ones, as well as tourism… and Christian places of worship,” the ministry stated.

The government recovered a large number of weapons, bomb-making materials, and ammunition in the raids.

The roadside bomb blast on Friday night in Giza also wounded 11 other Vietnamese tourists, although no group claimed responsibility for the bombing, Islamic militants have tried to disrupt the tourist trade in the past, which is one of Egypt’s biggest boosts to their economy.

Vietnamese foreign ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang, while grateful for the support given to the victims by Egyptian authorities, called for swift justice.

“Vietnam is very angry and strongly condemns the terrorist act that killed and injured many innocent Vietnamese and has asked Egypt to soon open an investigation, chase and give harsh punishment to those who carried out these terrorist act,” she said in a statement.

Prior to the “Arab Spring” in 2011, tourist numbers had peaked the year before with over 14 million tourists to the country. After the Muslim Brotherhood attacked the Egypt Museum and fanatical Muslim clerics called on the Egyptian government to destroy the pyramids as “symbols of paganism,” those numbers plummeted. In 2016, the number of tourists fell to just over five million.

Town of Giza, lies just behind the famous pyramids. (Author photo)

This latest attack took place in the heart of the tourist season, where the numbers have been coming back thanks to the government’s crackdown on Islamic terror groups. With the Coptic Christians of Egypt celebrating their Christmas, which they observe on January 7, the government fears even more attacks to target the long-suffering Copts who comprise between 16 -18 percent of the population of Egypt, about 9 million people.

The Islamic terrorists have attacked numerous buses and churches of the Copts as well as people traveling to their monasteries which, several are located in the desert region.

Coptic Christian monastery located in the desert, many of these have suffered attacks due to their remote location. (Author photo)

One of the issues is that the Egyptian police in the past have done little to nothing to stop the violence, often showing up (conveniently) just after the attacks or standing by and doing nothing to prevent them. In one case, refusing to prosecute Islamists who burned a Catholic church.

A good friend and colleague who has lived in the Middle East for many years and written about the plight of Christians there, Lela Gilbert, penned an article about the plight of the Copts, which can be read here.

Thirty of the terrorists were killed in two separate, simultaneous raids in Giza while 10 more were killed in the North Sinai. Although the government didn’t link these particular terrorist cells with the bus attack, they had to have had these particular targets under surveillance for some time, considering the quick timing of the raids after the bus attack.

The Egyptians launched these raids with hours of the bus bombing which happened at 1845 hours local time as the Vietnamese tourists were on their way to dinner at a restaurant.

The North Sinai has been a hotbed of Islamic terrorist activity since 2013, as terrorists with ties to the Islamic State (ISIS), claimed responsibility for attacks on tourist destinations. Back in February, the Egyptian Army launched a large-scale operation against Islamic terrorists named “Sinai 2018” to rid the Sinai of jihadists after the terrorists attacked a mosque in the peninsula killed more than 300 people. Since the inception of this operation, the army says that hundreds of suspected jihadists have been killed.

Having been to the tourist areas and museums of Egypt, the security there was largely a show of force and not particularly tight, however, things have changed in recent months as the government has tightened up their security protocols at those sites as well as at airports in the country.

With the tourist season in full swing, expect that trend to continue. If anyone is planning on visiting there during the height of tourist season, ensure you check with the American Embassy before and during your stay to keep abreast of any developments in the security situation there.

Photos: Author, Fox News

Bolton Wants to Build Arab Force in Syria to Replace the US

President Trump’s new national security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo are among those pushing to build a coalition of Arab military forces that could replace US troops in Syria and serve as a stabilizing force in the region once ISIS is defeated, according to official sources.

While convincing nations like Saudi Arabia to join the cause is sure to come at a price, the Trump administration is considering an offer that includes putting a compelling reward on the table, a source close to the White House told CNN.
A similar concept was initially floated in 2013 as part of the Obama administration’s anti-ISIS strategy, but the idea of establishing an Arab force aligned with US interests recently picked up new momentum after President Donald Trump declared that he wants to withdraw US troops from Syria and have other countries “take care of it.”
Specifically, the US is pursuing contributions from Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to help counter Iran in Syria by filling the void should the US significantly reduce its footprint in the country.
A source close to the White House told CNN on Tuesday that despite initial concerns that Trump would withdraw from Syria in the very near term, discussions have shifted toward developing a transition plan and that the administration is continuing its push to enlist the help of several Arab nations including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt.
This source also confirmed that Bolton recently called Egypt’s acting intelligence chief, Abbas Kamel, to gauge whether his country would be willing to contribute to the effort, a detail previously reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Designating Saudi Arabia a major non-NATO ally would formally acknowledge their standing as a strategic military partner with the US on the level of key allies like Israel, South Korea and Jordan.
“Major non-NATO status is a real feather in the cap of many nations … in a sense it would essentially cement the US as the guarantor of Saudi security for the foreseeable future,” said Nicholas Heras, a Middle East Security Fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

If the Arab nations did agree to this proposal, they’d still probably require logistical support and targeting data from U.S. satellites. So while U.S. boots wouldn’t necessarily be on the ground, the financial responsibility would still be a cross to bear for Washington.

To read the entire article from CNN, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Egyptian Army Kills 16 Terrorists in Sinai Military Operation

The Egyptian army launched a major military operation in the northern Sinai peninsula targeting terrorist bases, communication hubs and weapons caches. The army claims to have killed 16 terrorists and captured more than 30 more.

Dozens of targets were destroyed in air attacks, including vehicles, weapons depots, and communication centers, military spokesman Colonel Tamer Rifai said on Sunday.

“The air force targeted and destroyed 66 targets used by terrorist elements to hide from air and artillery attacks,” Rifai said in a statement.
The army’s casualty numbers could not be independently verified.
Egypt launched a “comprehensive” security operation involving the country’s army, navy and air force, aimed at pushing armed groups out of the Sinai Peninsula, parts of the Nile Delta and the Western Delta on Friday.
Egypt has, for years, battled an armed anti-government campaign in the rugged and thinly populated Sinai Peninsula, which has gained pace since the military overthrew democratically-elected President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood in mid-2013.
In November 2017, at least 235 people were killed in a bomb and gun attack on a mosque in Bir al-Abed, a town in North Sinai province.

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi after the terror attack authorized the military to use “all brute force necessary” to remove the terrorists from the rugged Sinai region. The military also said forces involved in the operation found a media center with computers, communication equipment and books and documents related to jihadi terrorist ideology.

Egyptian security forces also uncovered and destroyed six farms used to grow banned narcotics, the official statement said.

To read the entire article from Al Jazeera, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Coptic Christian Church in Cairo Attacked by Gunman, 11 Dead

A gunman, said to be part of the Islamic Stated killed at least 11 people on Friday in attacks on a Coptic Orthodox church and a Christian-owned shop near Cairo. Police forces then shot and wounded the gunman who was then arrested, the Egyptian interior ministry and church officials said.

The Islamic State, as is their usual operating procedure immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, in a statement carried out by its Amaq news agency. Although as usual, they offered no proof. However, the gunman was known to have carried out other attacks recently according to police reports.

Police have stepped up security measures around churches ahead of Coptic Christmas celebrations on Jan. 7, deploying officers outside Christian places of worship and setting up metal detectors at some of the bigger churches.
Islamist militants have claimed several attacks on Egypt’s large Christian minority in recent years, including two bombings on Palm Sunday in April and a blast at Cairo’s largest Coptic cathedral in December 2016 that killed 28 people.
The Coptic Church said the gunman first shot at a Christian-owned shop 4 km (3 miles) away, killing two people, before proceeding to the Mar Mina church in the southern Cairo suburb of Helwan. The Interior Ministry said he opened fire at the entrance to the site and tried to throw an explosive device.
The gunman killed at least nine people, including a policeman, at the church, according to Interior Ministry and Coptic Church accounts. The Church said a young woman had died later from her wounds, bringing the civilian death toll at the church to eight.
The ministry said security forces had “immediately dealt with the (attacker) and arrested him after he was wounded.” It added, “Legal measures have been taken,” without elaborating.

The attack began at 10:30 a.m. and last about 15 minutes, witnesses told police that the Police Officer was killed trying to secure the door to the church keeping the attackers out. The gunman was well-known to the police and had allegedly carried out several attacks in the past year.

To read the entire article from Reuters, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

Germany Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia and Egypt Increases Five Fold

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s administration has been increasing its arms sales to the Middle East. And particularly to what was characterized as “dictatorships” in both Egypt and Saudi Arabia. This has brought a wave of criticism leveled at Merkel from the left with one opposition lawmaker calling the practice “reprehensible.”

The German government’s arms sales have increased nearly five times from what they sold in the third quarter of 2016. Merkel’s administration approved nearly €450 million ($526 million) of weapons exports to Saudi Arabia and Egypt in the third quarter of 2017. During the same time period last year, arms sales were €86 million.

Opposition Left Party’s Stefan Liebich criticized the government’s exports to both countries as “particularly reprehensible.”

Saudi Arabia and Egypt have “to answer for the thousands of deaths from their dirty war in Yemen,” he said, referring to the ongoing civil war between Houthi rebels and Yemen’s government.
The Saudi-led coalition military intervention in Yemen has led to the death of nearly 10,000 people and created the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis in one of the Arab world’s poorest state. Human rights organizations have said the Saudi-led coalition may have commmitted war crimes, and the UN has warned some 7 million people face possible famine.
As Liebich pointed out, Germany’s policies used to be more restrictive. “There were times when it was completely ruled out for Germany to deliver weapons to countries that were participating in wars,” he said. “That only changed in the last two governments. It started with Turkey, which was sold weapons despite its war with the Kurds — that was a controversial discussion at the time.”

The problem now lies with the working coalition inside the government coming to a new agreement concerning arms sales. While many on the left want arms sales curtailed, others such as the Christian Social Union will want to protect and build up the arms industries in Bavaria.

To read the entire article from Deutsche Welle, click here:

Photo courtesy Wikipedia

On This Date: Fighting in the Yom Kippur War Ends in 1973

The fighting from the Six-Day War in 1967 had left the Arab states around Israel smarting. They were anxious to save face and wipe the young state of Israel off the map.The Israelis, for their part, were edgy, since their victory, terrorism had increased, the threat of war grew with each passing day and peace was no closer to the region despite their successes. All of those fears would come true on the holy day of Yom Kippur

The Soviet Union, anxious to expand their influence and counter the Americans support for Israel, threw their weight behind all of the regimes that surrounded the tiny Jewish state. This was as on the surface, the Soviets were doing their best fake impression of observing the détente with the United States.

Anwar Sadat and the Egyptians were itching for payback with Israel, having been humiliated against the Israeli’s twice, he wanted to revenge for the insult of being bested by their biggest enemy.

Prelude to War: Early in 1973, the threats of war were everywhere in the Middle East and yet nearly every observer and even the intelligence agencies all failed in predicting it was about to happen. The CIA told President Nixon right up until the day before hostilities began that the chances for war was “unlikely.”

Even more importantly, it was a failure and uncharacteristic one for the Israeli intelligence service Mossad. They had a source inside of Egypt, the son-in-law of ex-President Nasser and he reported that an attack was imminent. Zvi Zamir, the Director of Mossad subsequently learned from Military Intelligence that Soviet scientists were preparing to leave Syria and Egypt, which added weight to the report of pending war. But rather than inform the Prime Minister, he did nothing, expecting the military to sound the alarm. By the time Zamir briefed the government, it was just hours before the attack. Reports were surfacing that the Russians had equipped the Egyptians with SCUD missiles

On October 6, Chief of Staff David Elazar requested that PM Golda Meir authorize a full call-up of the reserves and order a pre-emptive strike. Meir was reluctant to order an airstrike first for fear of losing the support of President Nixon. She advised Henry Kissinger, the US Secretary of State and he approached both Sadat and Syrian President Hafez Assad not to ignite the powder keg.They ignored his advice and would pay the price.

War Begins on October 6: Egypt and Syria launched a coordinated assault on Israel on October 6, 1973, during Yom Kippur, the holiest of Jewish days and during the Muslim month of Ramadan. But the two countries were hardly alone. Iraq furnished a division of 18,000 men and several hundred tanks which attacked later on the Golan Heights and their MiGs were operating over the battlefield as early as October 8.

Saudi Arabia sent 3000 men who fought in Syria. Other non-Middle Eastern states furnished men, tanks, and aircraft including Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Sudan, Lebanon, and Morocco.

The Israelis were ridiculously outnumbered. On the Golan Heights, the Israelis fielded 180 tanks, 3000 troops and 60 pieces of artillery. They were faced with over 28,000 troops, 1400 Syrian tanks and 600 artillery pieces who attacked using the Soviet-style tactics. Along the Suez Canal, Israel had 500 troops spread out over several forts and just three tanks on the line. There were an additional 290 tanks in reserve. The Egyptians had 100,000 troops, 1350 tanks, and 2000 artillery pieces.

Operations in the Suez: At the opening of hostilities, the Egyptians established large bridgeheads across the Suez and easily defeated the uncoordinated and piecemeal Israeli counterattacks. They were heavily armed with RPGs and Sagger anti-tank missiles which took a toll on Israeli armor in the early going. But the Egyptians rightfully feared the Israel air force and were reluctant to venture far from their protective SAM (Surface to Air Missiles) belt around their troops.

The attack began with a coordinated air strike with more than 200 aircraft attacking strategic locations, radar sites, and airfields. After the initial shock, Israel responded and shot down 18 aircraft which prompted Egyptian leaders to cancel the follow-on air strike. Two Israeli F-4 Phantom jets took on 28 MiGs and shot down eight with no losses.

Despite this, 32,000 assault troops attacked and set up about a dozen bridgeheads. Initial air attacks by Israel were met with accurate and deadly SAM fire.

The plan was to launch several commando units by helicopter in the Israeli rear areas to disrupt reserves coming to the front. This met with disaster. Fourteen of the helicopters were shot down, most with a total loss of life. Of the 1700 commandos launched, 740 were killed and 330 taken prisoner. The Egyptians had pushed their bridgehead 10 miles into the Sinai, but the fighting was beginning to get bloody. By the end of October 10th, the Egyptians had lost nearly 250 tanks.

On the 14th two Egyptian armies were to attack the vital Israeli city of Refidim with 1000 tanks but beyond their protective SAM cover, the Egyptian air force would have to provide cover for the troops. The Israelis had 700 tanks opposing them. Egyptian command and control were hampered when Israeli commandos hit a signal center at Jebel Ataqah destroying it. The attack was decimated, Egypt lost 250 tanks and 200 armored vehicles. The Israelis lost just six tanks destroyed with 34 others damaged.

After the failed attack, the Israelis detected a gap between the two armies. General Ariel Sharon led a combined armored, commando attack that drove a wedge between the two. The paratroopers rowed across the Suez in rubber assault boats and got behind the lines and attacked SAM sites creating holes in the Egyptian coverage. The Israeli air force pounced and began to effectively provide deadly close air support.

A counterattack by Egyptian armor on October 16 wasn’t properly coordinated nor given proper reconnaissance. The two main pincers were decimated. The Egyptians lost 146 tanks and all of their APCs against the loss of just three Israeli tanks.

The Israelis began pouring troops into the gap.

After a series of bloody engagements, the UN had arranged a ceasefire on October 22. But fighting broke back out, whether it was Arab or Israeli who fired the first shot, no one knows but during this time, the Israeli armored forces broke thru and captured the road south of the Suez and encircled the Egyptian Third Army. By the time the ceasefire truly took effect, Israel had advanced within 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Cairo and had encircled the Third Army, which was in danger of being annihilated.

Bloody Fighting in the Golan: When the Syrians attacked on October 6, the Israelis gave the Golan first priority due to the proximity of major population centers of Haifa, Safed, Tiberias, and Netanya.

Heavy fighting raged between the vastly outnumbered Israelis and the Syrians who, despite horrendous losses kept pressing their attack forward. The Syrians would take a strong point and the Israelis would counterattack and take it back.

By the afternoon of the 9th, the Israelis were down to just six tanks, the road to northern Israel appeared ripe for the taking. Just then, 15 tanks arrived, having been patched up with crews who were already wounded. The Syrians, exhausted after four days of bloody fighting, began to withdraw. A few years ago on a visit to the Golan, I met one of the Israeli tank commanders who survived the battle. He said the Armored Brigade assigned there had tremendous prepared positions and had trained hard for years. The Israeli armor was able to inflict terrible casualties on the advancing Syrians by shooting, moving and communicating where it seemed their numbers were vastly higher than they actually were.

As more units began to arrive, the tide turned for Israel. By the end of the day on October 10, the Syrians were pushed back beyond the line where the war began just five days before. On the 11th, they advanced towards Damascus where they breached two lines of defense in heavy fighting. They were shelling the outskirts of Damascus just 25 miles away.

On October 23, the Syrians were planning a large offensive to drive the Israelis back. But that was when the UN ceasefire took effect. Assad considered still attacking but thought better of it. Artillery barrages still, however, rained back and forth

Casualties: The bloody fighting during the short war took a toll on both sides. Israel lost between 2500-2800 dead, 8000 wounded and 293 captured, many of whom were tortured and killed in captivity. They lost 400 tanks destroyed with 600 more damaged and 102 aircraft. Estimates for Arab casualties were horrific. Combined the Syrians and Egyptians lost between 8,000 -18,000 dead, 35,000 wounded with 2300 tanks destroyed with another 300 captured and put to use. Aircraft losses numbered between 350-514. Air to air combat was a rout. The Israeli pilots shot down 334 aircraft against just 5 in air combat.

Aftermath: Even after having been decimated with an army encircled and the enemy marching on Cairo, the Egyptians acted as if they won. This shift in thinking made it possible for Sadat to come to the table and sign a peace treaty with Israel. Sadat was assassinated on the reviewing stand of a parade honoring Egypt’s “victory” in the Yom Kippur War in 1981.

Photos Wikipedia

Egypt Bans 62 News Websites in Censorship Crack Down

Egypt is cracking down on dissident news websites among them the Muslim Brotherhood but opponents to the move say it is a step by the government to censor all that isn’t the state-run media.

The government has countered and stated that they’re banning sites that express support for terrorism. The media flourished in the final years of President Hosni Mubarak’s rule. But those days seem long ago now.

Journalists see the campaign against them as a step toward banning all but the most state-aligned media, effectively reversing the private media boom that flourished in the final decade of former president Hosni Mubarak’s rule and which they say helped push him from power in 2011.
Though no precise figures on readership are available, Egypt enjoys an active private media that includes widely read print and web format publications as well as popular late-night talk shows. State newspapers still maintain wide circulation.
The spike in censorship has come as a surprise, even to journalists long-accustomed to reporting within strict red lines in Egypt where direct criticism of the military, the president, and judiciary are considered taboo and punishable by jail time.
The government has offered no comment on the reason behind the blockages and the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology had no immediate comment.
Makram Mohamed Ahmed, head of the newly formed Supreme Media Council, a state media regulator, told Reuters he believes “the main reason is how much [these websites] deal with the Muslim Brotherhood or express support for terrorism,” referring to the Islamist group whose president Mohamed Mursi held office for a year before being ousted in 2013 by the military after mass protests.
But the blockages have also hit Mada Masr, a self-described progressive outlet with no Islamist ties, as well as the widely read Al-Borsa, a financial newspaper favored by the largely pro-government business community.
“If they did something more grave like arresting team members or me it would make big noise, whereas blocking the website is the best way to paralyze us without paying a high price for it,” Lina Atallah, editor of Mada Masr, told Reuters.
Some journalists say a presidential election in 2018 means Egypt is doubling down on press restrictions, a move intended to ensure opposition candidates have few spaces to challenge general-turned-president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is widely expected to run for a second term.
“There are people getting ready to nominate themselves for the presidency and they have to make their voices heard or else they won’t be competitive,” said Adel Sabry, the editor-in-chief of Masr al-Arabia, a website blocked last month.
“[The goal] is that it’s just one voice,” said editor-in-chief of Al-Borsa, Hussein Abd Rabo, who said his paper could be closed any day.

The situation there will have to be monitored closely as the government continues to crack down on what they characterize as terrorist sympathizers. The good news is that SOFREP was not among those news sites that have been banned.

To read the entire article from Reuters, click here:

Photo courtesy Reuters

Christians Being Erased from the Middle East, Land of its Birth

In the Middle East, Christianity is dying. Radical Muslims from the ranks of the Islamic State [ISIS] are killing them en masse and are threatening their very existence in the land where Christianity was born. And the world continues to turn a deaf ear.

In the United States, our Congress gives lip service to the genocide of Christians in the Middle East while allowing next to zero Christian refugees into the country. Why? The only country where the Christian population is growing is in Israel.

Just 15 years ago, there was an estimated 1.4 million Christians in Iraq. In 2013 there were more than 500,000. Now, there is estimated to be less than 250,000 left. In Syria, Christian were thought to be about 8 to 10 percent of the population of over 21 million. While the war-ravaged land cannot accurately give a number, all Congress will say is that the number of Christians in Syria is “significantly lower.”

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has declared a state of emergency in response to the Palm Sunday church bombings by ISIS where 36 Christian Copts lost their lives. He’s not describing the incidents as an attack on Christians but rather refers to them as a targeting all Egyptians in general. Much like the former Mubarak regime, el-Sisi talks about “national unity” in Egypt, but so far, his actions are much like the former regime and do not match his rhetoric. Coptic suffering is now worse.

In a piece by Mina Abdelmalak for the Philos Project, he writes about the exodus of Copt Christians from Egypt.

“But the Coptic community is dying. Our numbers are going down. Those who are financially able to emigrate have either left or plan to leave once they get a chance. Egypt lost its ancient Jewish community by persecution, and now the Copts—the indigenous population whose roots can be traced to Egypt’s earliest days—are following the following the steps of the Egyptian Jews.”

I spent time in Egypt with the Copts in both Cairo and at a retreat far out in the desert. Their leader, Bishop Thomas was a wonderfully calm and personable man who made us all feel welcome despite the undercurrent of uncertainty that was gripping their community.

He had the long flowing black robes and long white beard that made him seem like an extra from a Cecil B. Demille film. He initially turned down the position of bishop preferring the anonymity of serving behind the scenes in Kenya. The Copts remain upbeat despite what was happening all around them.

To try to make sense of what is happening in the Middle East where it comes to the Christians, I reached out to a subject matter expert as well as a good friend. Lela Gilbert is an accomplished author who has written more than 60 books as well as a frequent contributor to Fox News, Algemeiner, The Jerusalem Post, The Huffington Post, and many other publications. Her books include her “Saturday People, Sunday People” where she quoted a radical Islamist who called for “the elimination of first the Saturday people and the Sunday people” which translates to the Jews and Christians.

She moved to Jerusalem in 2006 during Israel’s bloody conflict in Lebanon with Hezbollah from Calfornia. She lived there for over 10 years until just recently moved back to Washington D.C. I’ve visited with her many of the places mentioned here with her as part of a security team for her and others. She’s been a trusted friend and a frequent source to find out what is going on in the region that you DON’T read in the newspapers.

So we got her to answer a few questions about the plight of the Christian community and ordinary Muslims as well in a few of the hotspots right now and her answers…as always are straight on point.

SO: What is going on right now, it seems that Christians are being erased in the Middle East, in Iraq, in Syria and lately in Egypt?

LG: “That is absolutely right, I spoke to one of my colleagues from Hudson about that today [Friday] and Egypt has the largest Christian population in the Middle East and they are being relentlessly slaughtered [by ISIS]. The government doesn’t have the capability to control it and they’d like to but they don’t seem to have any handle on how to stop it nationwide.”

“Things got worse for the Christians when el-Sisi took charge, he reached out to the Copts, their Coptic Pope and had him on stage with him when he was inaugurated. This sent a message to the bad guys [Muslim brotherhood and later ISIS] that the Copts were part of his team. Things got worse for them and continue to this day.”

SO: So, it is ISIS now has replaced the Brotherhood?

LG: “It is certainly ISIS now, the latest few incidents in Egypt have been results of their…’handiwork’ which they have taken responsibility for,” she said. “The Egyptian government has no love of them, in fact, they’re trying desperately to get rid of them. They’re trying to get them out of the Sinai. They [ISIS] want to oust the regime and take over.

And Israel is…I don’t know this first-hand but know this from people who do know is working hand-in-hand with the Egyptians to clear out the Sinai because Hamas is also helping ISIS. They’ve helped them along the way with arms and smuggling material for them.”

SO: What has been the spillover if any in Israel?

LG: “Well, right after the church attack, ISIS launched a rocket from the Sinai that hit Eilat, luckily it hit a greenhouse and no one was injured. And of course, when the Israelis respond you don’t hear that ‘Israel hit with four rockets that landed near a school.’ What you do hear is ‘Israeli jets bomb Gaza City’ or something like that.”

“There was genuine concern in Israel right after the Syria airfield bombing as now it is confirmed that Assad has chemical weapons in Syria and will use them. At a dinner at Rosh Hashanah, the conversation calmly turned to gas masks and people were all talking about making sure everyone had one as if it will be needed.”

The subject quickly turned to the news of Afghanistan and the bombing of the tunnel complex using the MOAB and how that would send a message to North Korea and Kim who loves to rattle his saber. But Gilbert said it also sends a message to Hamas as well. They’ve taken to digging tunnels from the Gaza Strip and the Egyptians have taken a new tactic against them.

“I’ve heard the Egyptians are flooding tunnels with raw sewage now and recently drowned three Hamas terrorists with that.”

SO: How far is the Coptic population dwindling?

LG: “That’s a good question. Nobody really knows. It is thought that the Copts make up about 10 percent of the country’s total population of 92 million. But some of my friends from there have said, that the wealthy ones, the ones with money or with lawyers and get asylum in the US have already done so.

What you’re left with are the very poor, the people who just don’t have the capacity to pack up and leave. There is no place they can walk to. They can’t go to Israel, or the Sudan. They don’t have any options unless they can get to a western nation. The ones that are left unfortunately are going to be the ones that are never going to leave. Nobody really knows how many [Christians] there are. And it isn’t just the Copts, it is the Anglicans, Evangelicals…etc.”

SO: That is terrible.

LG: “It really is the end of Christianity in the Middle East. The Copts are going to eventually get so weakened that they can’t continue. But their so proud and very loyal and faithful but look at Iraq and Syria. The Iraqi Christians are almost completely gone, some of them want to stay and rebuild but I don’t how it is going to be for them or who they’re going to trust to defend them.

SO: Exactly, many of the Iraqis that worked for me a few years ago, all stated that they’re afraid they’ll never be able to go back.

LG: I know…but for them re-building is trying to deal with bombed out buildings, booby traps, it is completely demolished. The churches are desecrated, everything is gone. Then they need protection. Where will they get that? Where will they get trustworthy protection?

They need a strong defense that can protect their entire village, not just weapons. Because they’re on their own. I just don’t have high hopes for their rebuilding. I wish I did. I know there are people that don’t like to say that. I don’t share their optimism.

Photo courtesy of Reuters