Egyptian Army Takes Out Leader of ISIS's Egyptian Branch

The Egyptian army announced that Abu Dua al-Ansari, the commander of the Egyptian branch of the Islamic State or ISIS, has been "taken out." According to the Egyptian army's statement, Abu Dua al-Ansari was killed on Thursday, August 5. Reports from news agencies, citing Colonel Ahmed Samir, spokesman for the Egyptian army, stated that a "precise and successful" air operation was conducted by the army in the "Al-Arish" area against the command band of the Egyptian branch of ISIS. The Egyptian army reported that besides al-Ansari, 45 other Egyptian ISIS members, including other command staff of the group, were killed, dozens more were injured, and their headquarters, along with a quantity of weaponry, were destroyed. ISIS has not yet confirmed the death of its Egyptian commander, but the Egyptian army has released before-and-after images of the command location of these militants. The group known as "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis," which primarily operates in the Sinai Desert in northern Egypt, pledged allegiance last year to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed leader of the "Islamic Caliphate." "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis" changed its name to "Wilayat Sinai" after coming under the black flag of ISIS. Abu Dua al-Ansari was killed just one day after his group threatened Egypt, along with Turkey, Israel, and the Gulf monarchies, in a 35-minute film titled "Desert Flame," with the majority of threats directed at Egypt's security. The film stated that all of Egypt would soon fall under the banner of "Wilayat Sinai." The downing of a Russian passenger plane last fall, which resulted in the deaths of 224 crew and passengers, has been attributed to this group. Abu Dua al-Ansari was referred to as the "brain behind" the planning of the downing of the Russian plane over Egypt. The first movements of the "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis" group against Egypt began after the fall of Hosni Mubarak's regime in early winter 2011, with dozens of explosions targeting the pipeline transporting gas from Egypt to Israel. However, during the brief rule of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the army conducted heavy operations against the "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis" militants under the command of Mohamed Morsi. The group's actions against the Egyptian army, which resulted in the deaths of several soldiers, aligned public opinion in the country alongside the government and army in striking against the "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis" forces. Even months after July 2013, when Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, then commander of the Egyptian army, took control of the country by ousting the Muslim Brotherhood government, the "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis" group's harassment actions against the army and tourists in Sinai continued. However, despite pledging allegiance to ISIS on November 10, 2014, the operational capability of this group has diminished on the ground. The Egyptian army has also accused the Palestinian Hamas movement in Gaza of collaborating with "Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis," but Hamas has denied these accusations and sought to improve its relations with the Cairo government. In the Sinai Desert, other armed groups with names such as "Shura Council of Mujahideen," "Jish al-Islam," "Takfir and Jihad," or armed Bedouin bands engage in guerrilla activities, with the Egyptian army occasionally confronting them.