Israel reportedly asks US to pressure Egypt to reduce military build-up in Sinai

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked the Trump administration to pressure Egypt to reduce a military build-up in the Sinai Peninsula, according to a report by Axios.

"Israeli officials say the Egyptian military build-up in Sinai has become another significant point of tension between the countries as the war in Gaza continues," said the report on Saturday.

Citing one US official and two Israeli officials, Axios said Netanyahu presented US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during their meeting on Monday in Jerusalem, with a list of Egyptian activities in Sinai that he claimed substantially violate the 1979 peace agreement with Israel, for which the US acts as guarantor.

The Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel were signed in Washington in 1979 by then-Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and then-Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.

The Sinai Peninsula was divided under the treaty into designated military zones with varying limits on troops and weaponry.

Two Israeli officials said Egypt has been expanding the military infrastructure, "some of which could be used for offensive purposes" in areas where only light weapons are permitted under the treaty, according to the report.

They cited extended "runways at air bases in Sinai so that they could be used by fighter jets and built underground facilities which Israeli intelligence believes could be used for storing missiles."

'Very serious'

There is no evidence missiles are being stored there, Axios cited the Israeli officials as saying, but they said Egypt had not offered a reasonable explanation, despite Israeli inquiries through diplomatic and military channels.