Print
    12 August 2012| last updated at 10:57AM

    US, Egypt negotiate new aid after Sinai clashes: report



    0 comments

    WASHINGTON: The United States and Egypt are trying to put together a new security assistance package to address the worsening situation on the Sinai Peninsula, The New York Times reported late Saturday.

     

    The Egyptian military has been bolstering its presence in the Sinai with  tanks and helicopters after Sunday’s unprecedented ambush on a border guard  outpost near the borders of Gaza and Israel, which left 16 Egyptian soldiers  dead.
     
    The Islamic militants, who carried out the attack, are believed to be  affiliated with the Army of Islam, a small radical Islamist group which Egypt  has blamed for several attacks in past years.
       
    Citing unnamed officials, the US newspaper said the US Department of  Defense is discussing with Egyptians a series of options for sharing  intelligence with Egypt’s military and police in Sinai.
     
    This intelligence includes intercepts of cellphone or radio conversations  of militants and overhead imagery provided by both piloted aircraft, drones,  and satellites, the report said.
     
    “We continue to discuss ways of increasing and improving the Egyptians’  situational awareness in the Sinai,” the paper quotes a Pentagon official as  saying.
     
    According to The Times, the talks are taking place through military and  intelligence channels as well as with the government of President Mohamed Morsi.
     
    Secretary of States Hillary Clinton, who was traveling in Africa last week,  spoke by telephone with new Egyptian Prime Minister Hesham Qandil to discuss  assistance, the paper noted. The date of the conversation was not disclosed.
     
    Egypt receives US$1.5 billion a year in military assistance from the United  States. -- AFP 
       

    Leave Your Comment


    Leave Your Comment:

    New Straits Times reserves the right not to publish offensive or abusive comments and those of hate speech, harassment, commercial promos and invasion of privacy. Your IP will be logged and may be used to prevent further submission.The views expressed here are that of the members of the public and unless specifically stated are not those of NST.