Cairo: Egypt's president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Saturday made an unannounced visit to rally troops in restive North Sinai region following a wave of deadly attacks on security forces in the area.
"Every thing is very stable here," said the President in a televised speech during his visit to police and military officers in North Sinai.
"The history will record the great role of the army. Don't worry -Egyptians - we have have our army. They are here to protect Egypt. If any one wanted to hurt Egyptians they must face the army first," he said.
The visit comes days after heavily-armed IS militants launched a wave of simultaneous suicide attacks on army checkpoints in the restive Sinai Peninsula, killing at least 70 people, mostly soldiers, in the biggest assault and triggering a massive retaliatory strike by the military using troops and F-16s.
During his visit, the president was wearing the military uniform for the first time since he took office in June 2014 in a bid to express solidarity with the army.
"Only one per cent of Egyptian army is participating in the operations in Sinai. Just one per cent," said the president during the speech.
The president also added that the world understands now that the stability in Egypt means stability and security of the region.?
"We are in the fourth generation of war, where every tool like communication and media is used," he said.
The President also said that the two major attacks that took place recently were meant to break the Egyptians.
"The assassination of the?general prosecutor was a message to the people who took to the streets on June 30 to remove a fascist religious regime. It meant to make people feel that the terrorist mute their voices," said el-Sisi.
"The second attack was meant to mark the removal of regime. Terrorists wanted show people that they can announce an 'Islamic' Province - according to their definition," he added.
