Egypt’s General Intelligence Directorate (GID), under the leadership of Major General Hassan Rashad, launched a sweeping joint campaign with China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) – the nation’s primary external intelligence arm – in early 2026. A strategic directive from the GID defines the operation’s objective as countering the “destabilizing activities of the Israeli intelligence services, especially the Mossad,” which it claims are undermining Egyptian and Chinese strategic interests across Africa.
Beijing’s intelligence is now devising operational plans to support Cairo’s efforts, specifically aiming to curtail Israeli reconnaissance ambitions in the region ensuring the security of Egypt’s borders and safeguarding China’s rapidly expanding investments in the area.
A cornerstone of this burgeoning alliance is a technology-transfer agreement intended to close the gap with Israel’s superior signals intelligence (SIGINT) and aerial surveillance capabilities. Reports from the Al-Ahram Center for Strategic Studies indicate that Beijing has provided Cairo with advanced mobile radar systems and electronic warfare suites. These systems have been woven into Egypt’s national air defense grid. According to a GID official, this integration now allows Egyptian forces to detect and classify aerial targets across their entire zone of operational responsibility, irrespective of the target’s technical affiliation with the U.S. or Israel.
The 2025–2026 period thus signals a strategic recalibration of the relationship between Egypt’s GID and China’s MSS. By combining diplomatic leverage, direct operational disruption, and the infusion of critical military technology, this axis is mounting a structured, long-term challenge to the Mossad’s intelligence dominance in Africa and the Middle East.