The Associated Press quoted a local security official as saying: "Egyptian security forces are looking for four Palestinians suspected of planning suicide attacks against northern Sinai resorts, having entered from the Gaza Strip last Friday. The forces have deployed local Bedouins to assist them in tracing the four Palestinians."
The agency said this came following the arrest of 15 Palestinians in the past few days, carrying weapons and explosives in the city of Arish. A senior intelligence officer in northern Sinai told the agency that 12 out of the 15 who were arrested belonged to Hamas, and that they were composed of two groups, each arrested separately while trying to escape from Arish with explosives, machine guns and ammunition.
In a related development, North Sinai security forces arrested two Palestinian brothers, namely Hani and Rami Abdel Fattah Hemdan, possessing a bomb. Security forces also intensified control of the entrances and exits of the cities of North Sinai, which prevented people from reaching their workplaces.
