Egyptian security forces killed two militants and a civilian in a raid targeting members of the outlawed Hasm group, the Interior Ministry announced today, stating authorities had thwarted a renewed plot to revive the group’s armed activities.
The Interior Ministry announced this morning it foiled a plot involving five Hasm members operating abroad and killed two others inside Egypt. In a video statement, the ministry accused Hasm of planning “hostile operations” against security and economic targets.
Hasm, short for "Harakat Sawa'd Misr" (Arms of Egypt Movement), emerged in 2014 and has claimed responsibility for a series of high-profile attacks in Egypt, mostly targeting police, judiciary, and government figures.
In a video aired by the state-aligned Extra News channel, the Interior Ministry detailed its account of tracking Hasm member Ahmed Mohamed Abdel-Razek Ahmed Ghoneim, who reportedly entered Egypt “illegally through desert routes” before taking refuge in a Bulaq al-Dakrour apartment in Cairo to prepare for a terrorist plot.
According to the Interior Ministry statement, security forces raided the apartment where Ghoneim and another suspect, Ihab Abdel-Latif Mohamed Abdel-Qader, were located. Abdel-Qader was reportedly wanted in connection with earlier plots to target prominent figures.
During the raid, both Ghoneim and Abdel-Qader opened fire, leading to a shootout. Both suspects were killed in the exchange, along with an unidentified civilian.
Beyond those killed in the raid, authorities also identified five other individuals involved in planning the attack.
The Interior Ministry named Yehia El-Sayed Ibrahim Moussa—a founding member of Hasm and supervisor of its armed wing—as one of the primary figures behind the plot. He has reportedly been sentenced to death in connection with the assassination of former Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat, and handed life sentences for attempting to target public figures and the presidential plane, as well as for the killing of officer Maj. Maged Abdel-Razek.
Another key suspect, Mohamed Rafiq Ibrahim Manaa, was also named in the statement.
In addition, the ministry said Alaa Ali Ali Al-Samahi, Mohamed Abdel-Hafiz Abdallah Abdel-Hafiz, and Ali Mahmoud Mohamed Abdel-Wanis were involved in the planning and had each been convicted in absentia on multiple charges, including attempted assassination of prominent figures.
The incident comes two weeks after a video attributed to Hasm surfaced online, showing masked men conducting military-style drills in an uninhabited desert area. The footage featured a banner that read: "Hasm: With our arms, we protect our revolution."
A voiceover in the video proclaimed a “new phase in the history of the Arab and Islamic nation.” Referencing the war on Gaza as a “historic turning point,” the narrator declared that Egypt “cannot remain silent or neutral,” and asserted that Hasm had “returned, stronger than before.”
This was the group’s first public reappearance in nearly six years, following a series of security crackdowns that weakened its presence. Hasm had been linked to several bombings and assassination attempts in the past, including the 2016 killing of national security officer Ibrahim Azzazy and an attempt on former Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa.
In 2019, Egyptian authorities blamed Hasm for a car bomb explosion in central Cairo that killed 20 people.
Fact-checking platforms such as Matsada2sh and Sahih Masr questioned the authenticity of the recent video, noting it could not be found on Hasm-affiliated Telegram channels. They suggested it may include recycled footage from older material filmed in Egypt and Syria.
The group is designated a terrorist organization by both Egypt and the US. While Egyptian officials say Hasm is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, the Brotherhood has repeatedly denied involvement in violent activities.
Al-Azhar’s Observatory for Combating Extremism compared the video to an old one used in 2017, describing its reemergence as a "desperate attempt to undermine the success of Egyptian security forces," and reiterated its stance that Hasm represents a violent extremist threat.
