Egypt’s Army Says Seven Hostages Taken In Sinai Are Free

Seven Egyptian security personnel taken hostage by suspected militants in north Sinai were freed soon after the military started a sweep of the lawless area to secure their release, the army said.

The six members of the police and one army conscript were freed through the efforts of military intelligence in cooperation with the “honorable tribal leaders and residents of Sinai,” according to the army’s Facebook page.

The release of the seven, who were taken hostage May 16, may have averted a large-scale military operation to free them. Security forces had escalated their deployment in the strategic peninsula, and President Mohamed Morsi had said all options were on the table, while ruling out negotiations with what his office described as “criminals.”

Morsi thanked Egypt’s security services in a message posted on Twitter, and also expressed “respect and appreciation to our people in Sinai for putting the interest of the nation above any other consideration.”

The announcement of their release came a day after the state-run Ahram Gate reported that security forces killed one gunman and captured three others in an operation in north Sinai.

The Sinai has grown increasingly restive since the 2011 ouster of Hosni Mubarak. The kidnapping was the most serious incident involving security forces in Sinai since 16 Egyptian border guards were killed by suspected militants in the area — an attack that also triggered a stepped up military and police deployment in the area.

The territory, which borders the Gaza Strip and Israel to the east, was long neglected under Mubarak, according to Arab tribes there which had complained of discrimination and a lack of services.

Source:Bloomberg