Watan-The Egyptian opposition journalist Osama Gawish shed light on the Egyptian businessman infamous for his bad reputation and his support for the coup and the military, Ibrahim Al-Arjani, who is close to Sisi’s son and is considered the right-hand man of the Egyptian president in strangling Gaza.
Al-Arjani has exploited the suffering of the besieged and wounded in Gaza, playing the role of a broker in facilitating their entry into Egyptian hospitals in exchange for money by manipulating the Rafah border crossing.
Gawish stated in a post on the X platform that Ibrahim Al-Arjani is not just a war or drug dealer but much more dangerous, as he is the founder of an armed militia similar to the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan led by Hemeti.
According to Gawish, Al-Arjani, also known as Haj Ibrahim, hails from Sinai, specifically from the Tarabin tribe, one of the strongest and largest tribes in northern Sinai.
حكاية إبراهيم العرجاني ، سمسار المعبر وصديق ابن السيسي
هناك تجار للدم وهناك تجار للحرب وهناك تجار للمخدرات وهناك إبراهيم العرجاني.
الحاج إبراهيم كما يحلو لأنصاره واتباعه أن يلقبوه ، رجل سيناوي من قبيلة الترابين واحدة من أكبر وأقوى قبائل شمال سيناء ، حاول التدخل عام 2008… pic.twitter.com/cWuHN3Qgqk
— Osama Gaweesh (@osgaweesh) February 4, 2024
Gawish mentioned that in 2008, Al-Arjani attempted to mediate between the Tarabin tribe and the Ministry of Interior for a truce, but his brother was killed under mysterious circumstances.
In defiance, Al-Arjani challenged the Ministry of Interior, detained several police officers during the era of former President Hosni Mubarak, and was arrested for several years, suffering a stroke while in prison.
Ibrahim Al-Arjani Between the Gates of Hell
After the January 25, 2011 revolution, he was released, and he started a new chapter in his life by collaborating with the military council and army leaders. He worked on uniting Sinai tribes, forming large groups of mercenaries.
And that group, formed as a militia, collaborated with the army under the pretext of confronting armed groups after Sisi’s coup in July 2013.
Financing Mercenaries to Support the Ruling Authority
Ibrahim Al-Arjani formed a union of Sinai tribes and worked closely with Mahmoud Sisi, the general intelligence officer and son of the president. His relationship with Mahmoud Sisi opened business opportunities with the army directly and without scrutiny.
Gawish claimed that Al-Arjani served as a financier for the militia he founded, aligning Sinai tribes under his leadership with a tribal facade but intelligence-driven internally. Al-Arjani announced the formation of the Union of Sinai Tribes and established a strong relationship with Mahmoud Sisi.
The “Arjani Group” had extensive partnerships with the National Service Projects Organization and the Engineering Authority of the Egyptian Armed Forces. It became the official sponsor of the Ahly Club at times.
However, the most significant ties and cooperation between Ibrahim Al-Arjani and Sisi’s son were in his hometown in northern Sinai.
After Abdel Fattah el-Sisi came to power, Al-Arjani became one of the brokers who controls who enters or exits through the crossing, coordinating through his company “Hala,” well-known among Palestinians.
Al-Arjani and the Strangling of Gaza
Gawish pointed out that Al-Arjani’s company is not registered in the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism’s directory of tourism companies; it is directly under the Egyptian General Intelligence, operating without any oversight. His company also handles all logistical services within the crossing.
The major issue is that Al-Arjani’s company is responsible for bringing Arab and international aid from Egypt to Gaza, giving him control over anything that could tighten the grip on the people of Gaza and their well-being.
Gawish concluded that Al-Arjani, Sisi’s monster, armed and funded by the president, controlling the keys to the Rafah crossing, manages it as he pleases, disregarding the suffering of the Palestinians.