Sinai Militancy and the Threat to International Forces

The Multinational Force and Observers (MFO), an international force that oversees maintenance of the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty, operates in the most volatile parts of the Sinai Peninsula, and its North Camp base is surrounded by militant activity. On June 9, 2015, the MFO was attacked by a jihadi group, and with Sinai now home to an Islamic State affiliate, some see major strikes against the MFO as inevitable. Egypt and the MFO can work to mitigate the likelihood of a successful attack. Meanwhile, with sufficient preparation, an assault on the MFO may not result in a major disruption of Egyptian-Israeli relations.