Thursday, July 2, 2015

Breakdown of ISIS Egyptian attacks

The nice people at the Institute of the Study of War have done an interesting breakdown of what ISIS did, how they did it, and what they hope to achieve. It's well worth a read.


ISIS’s Wilayat Sinai launched a wave of simultaneous attacks on July 1 targeting as many as 21 Egyptian military and police positions in North Sinai, focused primarily on the city of Sheikh Zuweid. Nearly eight hours of clashes between the insurgents and Egyptian security forces left several dozen dead and more wounded by some estimates. Conflicting reports among local media, Wilayat Sinai, and the Egyptian government obscure the exact death toll. ISIS’s operation included simultaneous ground assaults on Egyptian military positions and three suicide bombings targeting checkpoints in Sheikh Zuweid and allegedly the officer’s club in al-Arish, although there has been no confirmation of any suicide operations in al-Arish. The Egyptian military, backed by F-16 fighter jets, eventually forced the insurgents to withdraw from Sheikh Zuweid. ISIS’s Wilayat Sinai immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, declaring it used heavy and light weapons, RPGs and mortars, guided missiles, and air defense weapons to force away Egyptian aircraft from the locations under siege. The statement released by Wilayat Sinai also asserted its responsibility for launching three suicide attacks.