Egypt foils plots to assassinate Sisi; suspects held

Cairo — Cairo’s prosecutor general said in a statement on Sunday that the country’s President Abdul Fattah El-Sisi had faced two previous assassination attempts. The prosecutor said two cells were coordinating to target Sisi. The prosecutor said the plot was planned by two workers. However, the prosecutor did not disclose when the two cells were busted. The second assassination attempt was through a seven-member cell made up of six army officers, who were sacked over their Islamist allegiances, along with a dentist. The statement also did not detail when the second attempt to kill Sisi was foiled. But the officers, known as the “bearded officers,” were arrested last year. This is the first time that Egypt officially acknowledged assassination attempts against Sisi. However, in June Sisi reportedly canceled his participation at the Arab League summit in Maurtiania due to “credible information” of a plot to kill him. Egypt will try 292 militant suspects over plots to assassinate Sisi and attacks in the Sinai Peninsula, a prosecution official said Sunday. The suspects, including 151 currently in custody, were referred to a military court for alleged membership of the “Sinai State”, the local affiliate of the Daesh group, which is leading an insurrection in the Sinai. The suspects were questioned about the accusations against them and 66 confessed during an investigation that lasted more than a year, the official said. The official gave no further details, but said those who planned the assassination attempts were dismissed police officers who adhere to militant ideology. No further details about the plots were given. — Al Arabiya English/AFP