EGYPT PREPARES COMMANDERS FOR REGIONAL WAR

CAIRO [MENL] -- Egypt is preparing senior military commanders for the prospect of a regional war.

The preparations have included high-level government briefings of army commanders and a review of weapons and supplies of the major military commands.

Over the weekend, Egyptian Defense Minister Hussein Tantawi gathered commanders and senior officers of the Second and Third armies. Both armies, which have completed a series of exercises over the past year, are deployed in northeastern Egypt as well as in the Sinai Peninsula near the Israeli border.

The official Egyptian news agency reported that Tantawi reviewed the regional situation as well as military preparations to repel any enemy attack. The defense minister said his briefing was meant to provide commanders with a complete picture of the region.