World

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said a Sunday attack that left 16 Egyptian soldiers dead should serve as "wake-up call for the Egyptians to take matters into their own hands."

The New York Times reports this was the deadliest attack on Egyptian soldiers in recent memory and highlights both the tension between Egypt's new government and Israel and the fact that the attack means an escalation of violence in the Sinai Peninsula.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

We are covering other news today, including news out of Syria, where there have been some high-level defections. The prime minister of Syria fled to neighboring Jordan just two months after he was appointed. He says he has joined the opposition. Syrian rebels say that three other cabinet members also defected. These are the highest level departures from the government of Bashar al-Assad since the uprising began well over a year ago.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And we're also following news from the Middle East, particularly from Egypt. In the Sinai Desert that borders Israel, masked gunmen attacked Egyptian soldiers there. At least 15 soldiers are dead. Security has deteriorated sharply in that area since longtime President Hosni Mubarak's ouster last year.

NPR'S Leila Fadel has the story.

PRESIDENT MOHAMED MORSI: (Foreign language spoken)