Armed Forces deployed across Egypt ‘to help citizens feel safe’

Armed Forces spokesperson Mohamed Samir announced the military was deploying its forces across Egypt “to protect citizens" on Monday evening, after Egypt launched a series of airstrikes against purported Islamic State (IS) holdouts in Libya early that morning.

The National Defense Council decided to send its soldiers to the streets as a precautionary measure against any retaliation from domestic militant groups supporting the IS, Major General Mokhtar Qandeel told the privately owned newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm.

Samir didn’t detail the motivations behind the deployment, but posted several photos on his official Facebook page showing military tanks rolling down the streets. He merely noted that the Defense Council wanted to protect and secure vital state facilities at this time.

“In cooperation with the Interior Ministry, the Armed Forces have started to spread across Egypt’s governorates to protect public and private property, secure main roads and to help arrest criminals and outlaws,” the statement added.

Mobile patrols and checkpoints have reportedly been set up in main squares and roads across the country “to help citizens feel safe.”

Though Samir didn’t address potential violent responses to Egypt’s expanding war on Islamist militants, Qandeel notes that the “Islamic State has a lot of supporters in Egypt under different names who might try to avenge them, forcing the army to carry out operations to secure potential targets.”

According to Libyan military spokesperson Mohamed Hegazy, Monday's airstrikes killed 64 IS members.