Egyptian Ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Othman believes Israel is plotting to retake control of the Sinai peninsula

Egyptian Ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Othman believes Israel is plotting to retake control of the Sinai peninsula, he said in an interview with Palestinian news agency Ma'an published on Friday.

Othman stated that Israel has increased its rhetoric about lawlessness in Sinai and the subsequent “terror threat” to Israel, setting up a pretext to take control of the area.

The Egyptian official said that Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, are attempting to give the impression to the outside world that Egypt's post-revolutionary government is incapable of controlling its border with Israel.

Othman defended Egypt against claims that Sinai was not sufficiently under the control of the government. He stated that there was a campaign underway to improve security in the region, particularly in the northern Sinai on the border with Gaza. He added that the vast size of Sinai and its difficult terrain should be taken into consideration when judging the efficacy of Egypt's control of the area.

The envoy pointed out that the upheaval in the region, particularly in Libya, has affected Sinai as well. The flow of weapons into Sinai from Libya is largely believed to have increased since the uprising against Muammar Gaddafi began.

The pipeline in Sinai that carries gas to Israel and Jordan has been attacked by assailants six times since the fall of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak in February. The last such attack occurred on Tuesday.

Following Israeli retaliatory strikes for the attack on Gaza targets, Othman said that Israeli operations in Gaza were complicating Cairo’s efforts to stabilize Sinai.

The Egyptian armed forces launched a security operation in Sinai in August to root out hundreds of suspected militants believed to be behind some of the attacks on the pipeline and police compounds in the peninsula.