Egyptian president visits Sinai ahead of election, says militants will ‘soon be defeated’

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said on Friday that militants in the Sinai Peninsula would soon be defeated. He visited troops there days ahead of an election in which he is set to win a second term, Reuters reports. Polls will open on Monday when voters choose between Sisi and one little-known candidate who supports the former field marshal. Sisi has said he wanted more candidates to run for office. Last November, he ordered the armed forces to crush Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) after an attack on a mosque that killed more than 300 people. On Friday, Sisi chatted with pilots and troops during his visit to an air base in North Sinai.