Brotherhood warns of tribal turmoil in Sinai

Muslim Brotherhood officials have criticised what they called “attempts” by the Egyptian army to cause turmoil among the Bedouin tribes in Sinai. According to Quds Press this is represented by the army mobilising the Tarabeen tribe to fight the alleged Baytul-Maqdis jihadists in the peninsula. On the presumption that most Sinai residents are Bedouins from Tarabeen and other tribes, this means that they could well start fighting each other, according to the Brotherhood’s Yahya Akeel.

In an article published on the movement’s website in Sinai, Akeel said that a “demonised hand” is manipulating unrest in Sinai by mobilising the Tarabeen against the other tribes, named as Irmilat and Al-Sawara.

The army responded by accusing the Brotherhood of mobilising Sinai residents against the Tarabeen tribe after it had announced its support for the army in its war against the jihadists.

Akeel insisted that the people in Sinai will never return to the age when Bedouin tribes waged lengthy wars against each other. “Everyone in Sinai recognises the consequences of such fights and at the same time recognises the goals of the army activities in Sinai.” He described the army announcement as “propaganda” which reflects the “pessimism” within the armed forces and other “coup supporters.”