Egyptian Terrorist Group Pledges Obedience to ISIS
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iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Egypt’s problems with the country’s most infamous terrorist organization may have gotten worse now that Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has declared its allegiance to the Islamic State.
The New York Times reports that the militant group, which has already killed hundreds of Egyptian soldiers and police officers, could presumably follow the lead of ISIS by indiscriminately massacring civilians.
The pledge of obedience is also a coup for ISIS because it further diminishes the sway of a rival terrorist organization, al Qaeda.
Egypt has had some success in fighting Ansar Beit al-Maqdis with the security forces attacking its base in northern Sinai. Yet, despite its vastly superior firepower, the Egypt government is unable to eradicate the group, partly because informants are believed to have infiltrated its military.
Since the popular revolution that began almost four years ago, Egypt’s prime source of commerce, tourism, has suffered. Even as it has rebounded somewhat with the Muslim-led government having been overthrown, there are fears that Ansar Beit al-Maqdis siding with ISIS will further discourage travelers, particularly those from the West, from coming to Egypt.
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