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Lawless Sinai Becomes Flashpoint For Egypt With Israel, Hamas

The growing presence of armed groups in the Sinai threatens to destabilize the area, potentially drawing Israel, Egypt and Hamas into confrontation, Noura Khouri writes.
A vehicle burns after a firefight between Egyptian security forces and suspected militants at the al-Goura settlement in Egypt's north Sinai region, about 15 km (10 miles) from the border with Israel, August 12, 2012. Egyptian troops killed as many as six Islamist militants after storming their hideout at the settlement near the isolated border with Israel on Sunday, security sources and eyewitnesses said.  REUTERS/Stringer (EGYPT - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR36RYG

Another another episode in Egypt’s political drama is unfolding in the "lawless Sinai," or the "Wild West" as it’s often called.

The murder mystery, also referred to as the “Ramadan Massacre,” which killed 16 Egyptian border guards last Aug. 5, comes complete with a showdown of political rivals, Muslim extremists and riveting plot twists, leaving observers at the edge of our seats. The antagonist, Wael Hamdy, an Egyptian “leftist” lawyer who recently brought a case against Hamas for the killing of the border guards stated: “I filed the case because I was worried about the state of national security in my country after the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood to power and its unclear policies and links with Hamas.”

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