Dr. Bahaa Helmy writes: The Oases attack reveals the scale of the danger facing the country

It is true that the event is grave and that the number of martyrs is high: sons of Egypt, men of the Special Operations Forces and National Security, fell in a single security mission planned as a pre-emptive strike in the Bahariya Oasis area. The mission targeted the most dangerous terrorist elements, who have allied themselves with the devil to carry out hostile ideas, plans and agendas against the people of Egypt and the country's security and stability.

It is also true that the security agencies and their research and operations centres must swiftly complete their study of the mission, the course of events and its results, in order to draw the lessons learned, both in terms of operations management and in terms of crisis management and nipping rumours in the bud.

However, this attack, the number of martyrs and the manner of engagement reveal to us the scale of the dangers facing the country, and the operations that the forces of darkness have begun preparing and equipping themselves to carry out on the ground at some point, in order to target the state and its stability, undermine the reform steps taken to build the future, and try to influence Egyptians' choices in the upcoming presidential election.

The attack also shows the locations of the camps and hideouts that the terrorist elements use as bases for their training and as launching points for their operations, and their mode of engagement: selecting commanding positions in rugged desert areas characterised by caves and hills, methods of concealment, as well as the training of these elements in laying ambushes and conducting battles in the field in a pre-planned manner.

Law enforcement forces had previously targeted that area and other desert areas, such as the Ain Sokhna area and some areas of Upper Egypt, and cleared them. The security forces have also succeeded in tracking and targeting the armed terrorist movements that emerge from time to time under different names but stem from a single source, namely the terrorist group.

This explains President Sisi's decision to declare the state of emergency in the country once again for three months as of the morning of Friday, 13 October 2017, after it had lapsed for only three days following the end of the first emergency period, which was declared on 10 April after the bombings of the Alexandria and Tanta churches and ended on 10 October. This was due to the existence of real threats to national security and public order in the country, something confirmed by the evidence from the Bahariya Oasis attack.

While the responsibility for protecting national security and combating terrorism lies with the state and its security and military institutions, civil society and every individual in society also bear a responsibility. It consists in everyone being certain that the security measures taken by the state and the sacrifices of the men of the police and the armed forces are aimed at protecting the state, its unity and its foundations; in guarding against being swept along by malicious rumours or by attempts to undermine morale and shake confidence in the state's agencies and institutions; and in everyone submitting to the rule of law and to security procedures and precautionary measures, such as searches, reporting any suspicious persons or unusual movements, and notifying the authorities of tenants and occupants of furnished apartments, tourist villages, hotels and various residential gathering places.

Imposing a state of emergency is necessary at such times to protect the country, in line with what is practised in all countries of the world. After the Paris attacks in November 2011, the French President declared a state of emergency and closed the borders with neighbouring countries; and a state of emergency was declared in Belgium, with the capital Brussels placed in lockdown, in October 2015, and then reinstated in March 2016 following the terrorist attacks at Brussels Airport.

Despite the terrorist threats and dangers, the law enforcement forces of the police and the army have the competence and capability to combat and defeat terrorism, and they possess an unyielding determination and resolve, drawn from and supported by the spirit of defiance that Egyptians possess.