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Africa North
Egypt says it thwarted attacks on Copts
2018-12-21
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Egyptian police have killed eight suspected Islamist bully boyz in shootouts in and around Cairo, the interior ministry said Thursday.

It said those killed belonged to the Hasm group, believed to be a breakaway faction of the outlawed Moslem Brüderbund, and added that four others were tossed in the clink
Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'!
 in a raid on hideout in the capital.

The operations in Cairo and the capital's Giza district were based on intelligence of planned attacks during celebrations for Coptic Christmas, which is marked on January 7, the ministry said in a statement.

It did not give dates for the operations.

Hasm group has claimed deadly attacks on security forces as well as liquidation attempts targeting a pro-government Moslem holy man and Egypt's deputy prosecutor general.

Egypt has launched a crackdown on Islamists following the 2013 ouster of president Mohammed Morsi, who was a senior Brotherhood figure.

Coptic Christians, who account for around 10 percent of Egypt's 96-million population, have been a key target of ISIS group.

The armed forces launched a nationwide offensive in February 2018 against IS, especially in the Sinai Peninsula where the group has waged a deadly insurgency since Morsi's fall.
The Times of Israel adds:
The Interior Ministry said two of the eight killed were separately shot dead after they opened fire on security forces storming two residences in Cairo. The remaining six were killed in a shootout as they tried to flee Cairo.

The Interior Ministry, which oversees the police, did not say when the events took place.
Al Ahram adds:
The Ministry of Interior said that National Security investigations revealed that the members of the organization had received discrete orders via social media and mobile applications to target a number of public figures and vital state facilities.

A number of the terrorist group’s members managed to escape through the desert Giza-Wahat road and security forces are currently in pursuit.

Security forces seized arms, ammunition, electric circuits and other material used to manufacture improvised bombs.
Posted by:Fred

#2  Murdering Christians is a crime in Egypt who knew?
Posted by: jpal   2018-12-21 11:20  

#1  Gosh! Just think how many would get killed this coming week if the Egyptian G-Men weren't on the case!
Posted by: ed in texas   2018-12-21 07:06  

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