US considering moving Sinai troops

Bedouin protesters raise Al-Qaeda-affiliated flags on a watch tower of a Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) base in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. (AFP)

AFP, Washington

The US military is considering pulling troops from a base in the northeastern part of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, partly because of the increasing threat from ISIS, CNN reported.

The Obama administration may order the movement of some US and international troops into the southern Sinai, and is discussing such a move with Egypt and Israel, CNN said.

The two Middle East countries signed a peace deal in 1979, agreeing that a Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) mission would monitor compliance.

Some 700 US troops are part of that mission, CNN said.

Most of the peacekeepers are stationed at El-Gorah camp, near the Gaza Strip.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis declined to confirm or deny the CNN report.

“We remain fully committed to the objective of the MFO mission and the maintenance of the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt,” he told AFP.

“We are in continuous contact with the MFO and adjust force protection capabilities as conditions warrant.”

Officials worry the threat of an ISIS attack targeting US forces in the region is increasing.