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Fear of Instability Behind Egypt's Readiness to Send Troops to Libya, Experts
Say

Nisan Ahmado

   WASHINGTON - Libya's civil war and its role in regional stability have
   become more uncertain since June 20 when the Egyptian parliament
   authorized its troops to cross the border to help the forces of General
   Khalifa Haftar against Turkey-backed Government of National Accord
   (GNA).
   Egypt's military intervention attempt in eastern Libya, some observers
   say, is largely prompted by Cairo's increasing fear of Islamist groups,
   such as the Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic State (IS), gaining a
   foothold at home if the GNA defeats Haftar's forces in Libya.
   "Egypt is very worried about militias; it is fighting extremists in
   Sinai and there have been extremists captured who have been linked back
   to militia groups in Libya and trained back in Libya," Mirette Mabrouk,
   the director of the Egypt Program at the Middle East Institute, told
   VOA.
   Egypt shares a 1,200-kilometer, porous border with Libya that, Mabrouk
   said, is a major security concern for the Egyptian government.
   While Cairo's decision was spurred by the Turkish introduction into the
   Libyan civil war, concerns of cross-border militia infiltration into
   Egypt increased in recent weeks after the odds shifted in favor of GNA
   in its battle against Egypt's ally, the Libyan National Army, she added
   The Egyptian parliament has said it approved sending troops to the
   western front with Libya to defend its national security.
   Condemning "regional powers support to radical forces," Egypt's
   Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry recently called on the United
   Nations Security Council (UNSC) to stop the danger of terrorist
   organizations in Libya.
   Egyptian local media has blamed the Turkish intervention in Libya for
   an increase in attacks in the northern Sinai Peninsula by terrorists,
   such as IS, who roam its western borders.
   Originally known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, the Islamic State in Sinai
   province was formed in 2011 with an initial goal to fight Israel and
   "free" Jerusalem. The group shifted its operations to target the
   Egyptian army in 2013 after the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi was
   ousted in a coup by the current President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.
   Egypt has since failed to completely defeat IS despite large-scale
   counterterrorism operations in Sinai and joint security cooperation
   with Israel in the region.
   Last week, the Egyptian army said it thwarted a terrorist attack in
   northern Sinai, killing 18 IS militants. However, independent local
   media reports said IS has claimed killing 40 soldiers and occupying
   four villages in the area.

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