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Photo: Roi Idan

Tribesman kidnap 19 Egyptian guards near Israel border

Security officials say Sinai tribesmen snatched guards in retaliation for recent killing of smuggler

Security officials said tribesmen have kidnapped 19 Egyptian border guards along the border with Israel in retaliation for the killing of one of their members.

 

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The officials said the Bedouin tribesmen snatched two Egyptian officers and 17 soldiers Thursday from positions along the border. Some of the guards were in vehicles patrolling the Egypt-Israel border in the Sinai Peninsula to prevent local gangs from smuggling African migrants into Israel.

 

The officials said the tribesmen were protesting the killing of one of their members, a smuggler, as he tried to sneak into Israel days ago.

 

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters, said there were negotiations for the guards' release.

 

Egyptian security officials believe the border guards are being held by Bedouins in Sinai who are cooperating with the smugglers.

 

Over the weekend two American women and a local tour guide were kidnapped by armed men in Sinai. Security officials said they were released within a few hours.

 

 

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פרסום ראשון: 02.09.12, 21:05
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