Egypt s newly appointed Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Mohamed Farid Hegazi, has conducted an inspection of army and police forces deployed in North Sinai, Al-Ahram Arabic website reported.
On Monday, Hegazi visited a number of checkpoints and military posts on the governorate s major roads, inspecting weaponry and the preparedness of security forces.
The chief of staff praised the level of cooperation between the armed forces and the police in the battle against terrorism, affirming that the people of Sinai are the first line of defence in Egypt s national security.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a presidential decree on 28 October appointing Hegazi as the new chief of staff of the Egyptian armed forces, replacing Lieutenant General Mahmoud Ibrahim Hegazi.
Egyptian security forces are battling a North Sinai-based Islamist insurgency that intensified following the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
Hundreds of security personnel have been killed by militants in recent years, while the army has killed hundreds of militants in security campaigns in the governorate.
