Egyptian security forces took positions surrounding the area near the border with the Gaza Strip where tunnels have been found, after receiving information that terrorist groups intend to carry out attacks during the Id al-Adha holiday, which begins Monday evening.
Forces have increased their presence and will try to prevent smuggling into the country, the Al-Ahram Gate website reported.
In addition, security forces arrested 18 suspects who were targeting police buildings and security bases in the Sinai. One of the suspects is a Palestinian, according to the report.
Three police conscripts were injured in north Sinai on Sunday during an ambush. Attackers shot at an Interior Ministry bus in Sheikh Zuwayed city, according to Ahram Online.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian daily Al-Youm Al-Sabaa reported that the army continued Monday afternoon to close entryways and exits to Tahrir Square in Cairo in anticipation of marches by members of the Muslim Brotherhood.
The anti-coup coalition is calling for a march to coincide with Id al-Adha, under the banner “Pray for Egypt.”
A statement published on Ikhwanweb, an official Muslim Brotherhood website, sought to link the struggle with the army to the holiday.
Also, on Sunday, the family of deposed president Mohamed Morsi said he would not enter any negotiations or accept any compromises with military rulers. Morsi has been held in a secret location since his overthrow and has not been seen. He is due to face trial on November 4 on charges of inciting violence.
“The president will not retreat, or negotiate or accept compromises especially after all the martyrs, the wounded, the arrested and missing,” his family said in a statement carried on the Muslim Brotherhood’s website. “No matter how much they try to keep him away, the president will not retreat from a return to the democratic path, even if his soul is the price of this democratic path,” the family said in a statement to mark the Muslim feast of Id al-Adha.