2024-03-30 10:40:16
On the other hand, there is the public figure: a child of Sinai, an influential tribal dignitary, a successful businessman pampered by the regime of General Al-Sisi. In this outfit, Ibrahim al-Argany is consumed with anger and indignation at the martyrdom of the Palestinians in Gaza.
“The justice of the Palestinian cause remains a test and a measure of the justice of world politicians (…). Patience and firmness for every being who carries within himself human constants and defends them against the machine of oppression and destruction”, he wrote on the social network And then on the other side, there is the godfather with mafia methods associated with the Egyptian intelligence services, to whom the blockade of Gaza has enabled him to amass a whole fortune of dirty money: smuggling, racketeering, human trafficking.
An agency “made up largely of former Egyptian military officers”
Among the many companies that al-Argany runs, the one he dedicated to tourism services, Hala Consulting and Tourism Services, has seen flourishing development in recent times. Before the Israeli offensive in Gaza, its bus transfer service for residents of the Palestinian enclave to Cairo cost $700 to $1,200 per traveler. Prices have increased fivefold, at least, since October 7.
This agency “is composed largely of former Egyptian military officers”, noted Human Rights Watch in 2022 in a report devoted to Gaza. Very useful recruitment to ease bureaucratic constraints and pass checkpoints during the journey.
Al-Argany has not always been in the favor of Egyptian power. At the end of 2008, he was even arrested during clashes between the Bedouins of Sinai and the security forces accusing them of complicity in the attacks in Taba in 2004 and Sharm el-Sheikh in 2005. The trafficker, who was already involved in the smuggling of goods and weapons through the tunnels dug between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, was then incarcerated.
Upon his release in the summer of 2010, he established close ties within the military and police apparatus. And, after the 2013 coup, this cooperation came to light: Al-Argany played mediators on behalf of the Egyptian state, extorted migrants from East Africa, and supervised tribal militias. which supports the security services against jihadist groups in the peninsula, shares with the military the profits from the fee imposed on trucks entering the Gaza Strip (before the war: 200,000 Egyptian pounds, or more than $11,000 per passage ).
He became close to Mahmoud al-Sissi, the shadow of his dictator father, today deputy head of Egyptian intelligence. With high-ranking officers, he founded several companies, including “Sons of Sinai”, which manages all contracts linked to the Gaza “reconstruction” efforts as part of a $500 million plan, supported by Israel and the Westerners. Transfer of goods, construction, transport: he built a real monopoly. Even more so since October 7, Gaza, for this unscrupulous businessman, is a goose that lays golden eggs.
We were unable to confirm your registration. Your registration is confirmed.
1711798461
#Gaza #Ibrahim #AlArgany #lucre #war #profiteer