Egypt Launches Sinai Offensive

Egypt's military spokesman said on Saturday that in the army's campaign against fighters in the Sinai Peninsula, the army has killed 32 "criminal elements", arrested 38, and destroyed 31 tunnels along its border with Gaza. The offensive, called "Operation Sinai," began August 7, a few days after 16 Egyptian soldiers were killed at a border post. Although Israeli authorities are expected to be uncomfortable about an operation so close to the border, Egyptian officials said the deployment "is not a violation of the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel."