Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on dismissed as “propaganda” an Israeli claim that it provided support related to this week’s jihadist attacks against Egyptian soldiers in Sinai that were carried out by an Islamic State affiliate.
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The attacks were the deadliest since the army declared northern Sinai a war zone in 2013 following the military’s overthrow of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.
Incidents along the Israel-Egypt border are rare.
The clashes were triggered by a co-ordinated mass assault of IS militants on the town of Sheikh Zuweid.
“The council has now adopted more resolutions against Israel than the total number of resolutions it has made on other countries”, the premier said, adding that the UNHRC “cannot call itself a human rights council”.
On Friday, a demonstrator was killed by birdshot as police dispersed pro-Morsi protesters in southern Cairo, officials said. The Brotherhood denies involvement.
Soldiers in the IDF’s Southern Command searched open areas to find the rocket impact location. Later in the day, the Egyptian army issued a statement, saying that it killed over 100 militants following the terrorist attacks, which left 17 army personnel dead.
It was possible the launch was linked to the fighting in Sinai, the military source said.
Sinai Province claimed the rocket attack on social media on Friday.
“And because many Egyptians are tired of political tumult and frightened by an upsurge of terrorist attacks within Egypt’s major cities, they are largely supportive of this crackdown”, said Eric Trager of think-tank The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
In a separate operation on Wednesday, Egyptian special forces raided an apartment in Cairo, killing nine people among whom Nasr al-Hafi, a lawyer and a ex- lawmaker member of the Muslim Brotherhood.
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“We know that Hamas, and I have verified information, that Hamas in Gaza is assisting ISIS Sinai Province both in organisation and armaments”, Mordechai told Al Jazeera in an interview, speaking in Arabic.
