WASHINGTON — The US is sending dozens of additional troops and support equipment to improve protection for US peacekeepers in the northern Sinai Peninsula in the aftermath of a roadside bomb attack last week that wounded four US soldiers, defense officials said Wednesday.
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The officials said at least 75 additional troops are being deployed, including a light-infantry platoon and a surgical team, as well as surveillance equipment and other assets designed to beef up the peacekeepers’ self-protection.
The officials were not authorized to discuss the details publicly and so spoke on condition of anonymity. They said plans for additional security measures were in the works before last week’s attack, reflecting growing US concern about security for US members of what is formally known as the Multinational Force and Observers.
The US has about 720 soldiers in the Sinai as part of the multinational force that has continually monitored compliance with the 1979 peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. The centerpiece of the US group is the 1st Squadron, 112th Cavalry Regiment of the Texas Army National Guard, which has been operating there since early this year.
Four US soldiers and two Fijians with the Multinational Force and Observers’ peacekeeping mission were injured last Thursday when their vehicles were hit by a roadside bomb during a routine patrol near their base in the town of el-Gorah.
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