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Quarterly Report: 2015 Q4


The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy’s Egypt Security Watch explores the nature of the security threat that Egypt faces, providing insight and analysis on the state’s response to this threat. The project has always been dynamic, responding to the changing contours of the situation on the ground and to the needs of its audience. After producing the project’s first comprehensive report in late 2014, we issued monthly reports on the project’s findings, keeping pace with the heightened attacks that occurred shortly thereafter.

In the last quarter of 2015, several things happened: We produced our second annual report, Egypt’s Rising Security Threat, began integration of TIMEP’s research across our project areas, and reports of activity diminished significantly. Taking stock of these developments, we decided to reformulate our reporting approach, and we determined a quarterly period would better allow us to identify trends and make sense of transformations in the security landscape. We have also expanded the scope of the reports to include a more concerted analysis of contextual developments, drawing on the breadth of our institutional knowledge. This new format will not only continue to provide information on trends, but will offer a richer understanding of Egypt’s overall security situation and its trajectory.

Thus, our quarterly reports will feature three sections:

  • Terrorism: With information detailing notable attacks, terror group developments, and trends, this section provides a picture of the threat posed to Egypt from actors seeking to use political violence to create a climate of fear in the country.
  • Counter-terrorism: Mirroring the previous one, this section will focus on the state’s stated efforts to combat terrorism (as defined by the state), detailing notable operations, developments within the security sector, and trends.
  • Legal and Political Context: This section explores the larger political and legal contexts in which the state carries out its declared “war on terror,” examining relevant juridical developments, legislation, and political actions and discourses.

As with all of our work at TIMEP, we are committed to furthering policies toward and in the region that both foster safety and security for its citizens, while recognizing that these must be based on a sincere and comprehensive respect for human rights and the rule of law. We hope that these new reports will contribute to a sound understanding of the security situation necessary to inform this policy approach.

Download the full briefing here:

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