CAIRO, April 13 (UPI) -- Egyptian police Monday searched areas in the Sinai Peninsula for alleged Hezbollah agents thought to be plotting attacks in the region amid increased tensions.
Cairo last week arrested 49 people linked to Hezbollah following claims that Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah had ordered attacks on Egyptian soil.
Nasrallah denied the allegations Friday, saying Hezbollah does not coordinate attacks outside of Lebanon, though various reports suggest he had admitted to using Hezbollah agents in Egypt to coordinate weapons smuggling for the Palestinian Hamas.
Egyptian Information Minister Anas el-Fiqi said during the weekend his country would not sit idle amid the growing security threat, Egypt's State Information Service reports.
"We underline Egypt's full right to take all necessary measures to protect its national security," he said.
Nasrallah had in December accused Egypt of working alongside Israel during the latest siege on Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
Hezbollah's al-Manar television station, meanwhile, reports Israeli Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz has called for Nasrallah's head.
"Nasrallah deserves death, and I hope that those who know what to do with him will act and give him what he deserves," he said.
