The 2009 Hezbollah plot in Egypt involved the arrest of 49 men by Egyptian authorities in the five months preceding April 2009. Egypt accused them of being

Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...

agents planning attacks against

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i and Egyptian targets in the

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai (now usually ) (, , cop, Ⲥⲓⲛⲁ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a l ...

. The arrests led to tensions between the Egyptian government and Hezbollah, as well as between Egypt and Iran. Tension had been high since Israel's Gaza War. Hezbollah head

Hassan Nasrallah Hassan Nasrallah ( ar, حسن نصر الله ; born 31 August 1960) is a Lebanese cleric and political leader who has served as the 3rd secretary-general of Hezbollah since his predecessor, Abbas al-Musawi, was assassinated by the Israel Def ...

had accused Egypt of being a partner to the killing of Palestinians there, saying if it did not open the

Rafah crossing The Rafah Border Crossing ( ar, معبر رفح, Ma`bar Rafaḥ) or Rafah Crossing Point is the sole crossing point between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. It is located on the Gaza–Egypt border, which was recognized by the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace ...

it would be considered a "partner in the killing of Palestinians by the IDF." The plot prompted the Egyptian government to officially designate Hezbollah a "terrorist group".

Activities

Port Said Port Said ( ar, بورسعيد, Būrsaʿīd, ; grc, Πηλούσιον, Pēlousion) is a city that lies in northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal. With an approximate population of 6 ...

, a cell was set up to monitor ship activity in the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

. The cell was to buy a boat as well as set up a fish shop in order to do this. Reports said the men had planned three major bomb attacks in Taba, popular with Israeli tourists, using explosive belts and car bombs.

Reaction

Egyptian

Egypt's reaction was hostile. President

Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011. Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in t ...

issued a strong statement denouncing the Lebanese group and its supporters. "They ezbollah and Iranaspire to impose their influence on our Arab world by introducing hostile elements into the region, in efforts to threaten Egypt's national security," Mubarak said. He added, " will uncover their plot; beware of Egypt's wrath." In addition, the Egyptian newspaper ''

Al-Ahram ''Al-Ahram'' ( ar, الأهرام; ''The Pyramids''), founded on 5 August 1875, is the most widely circulating Egyptian daily newspaper, and the second oldest after '' al-Waqa'i`al-Masriya'' (''The Egyptian Events'', founded 1828). It is majori ...

'' claimed that Iran,

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, and

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

were working to overthrow the Egyptian government.

Hezbollah

Hezbollah said one of the men was indeed one of their operatives, but that he had been trying to smuggle weapons into Gaza for

Hamas Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...

. The group said the terror plot claims were "fabricated" to "sully Hezbollah’s image" and that the allegations were retaliation for Hezbollah's comments during Operation Cast Lead.

Sudan

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

ese official claimed rebel groups had collaborated with Hezbollah in smuggling weapons to Egypt. He condemned “any sabotage to a country’s sovereignty under any circumstances”.

Convictions

On April 28, 2010, 26 men were convicted of planning the attacks and given sentences from six months to life imprisonment. Four men were convicted ''

in absentia is Latin for absence. , a legal term, is Latin for "in the absence" or "while absent". may also refer to: * Award in absentia * Declared death in absentia, or simply, death in absentia, legally declared death without a body * Election in absen ...

''.

Escape

In the midst of the

2011 Egyptian protests The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January revolution ( ar, ثورة ٢٥ يناير; ), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police ho ...

, the cell's ringleader and 21 other Hezbollah suspects escaped from the Wadi El Natrun prison north of Cairo. Some later appeared back in Beirut.

References

External links

Hezbollah in Egypt: The Politics of Conspiracy and Resistance - The Jamestown Foundation
*http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7996665.stm

*http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1080643.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Hezbollah plot in Egypt Terrorist incidents in Egypt in 2009 Failed terrorist attempts in Asia Failed terrorist attempts in Africa Egypt–Iran relations Egypt–Israel relations Iran–Israel proxy conflict Hezbollah–Israel conflict