News / Egypt

Explosion kills 3 Egyptian police conscripts in Sinai

Wednesday, 27 April 2016 3:41 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 27 April 2016 4:04 PM ]

A soldier from the Egyptian army special forces mans a temporary checkpoint outside Sharm el-Sheikh airport on November 11, 2015. (AFP photo)

Three Egyptian police conscripts were killed in a roadside bombing Wednesday in the restive Sinai Peninsula, Egypt’s Interior Ministry said.

The bomb targeted a police convoy as it drove through the North Sinai provincial town of el-Arish.

Meanwhile, state-run MENA news agency quoted an unidentified security official as saying that another eight policemen were also wounded.

Egyptian law enforcement agencies have launched a manhunt operation in connection with the bombing.

No individual or group has claimed responsibility for the blast, but such incidents are often blamed on militants affiliated with the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group.

The Wednesday blast is the latest in a string of attacks against Egyptian security forces across the troubled region.

On April 24, an explosion rocked the volatile peninsula, killing three members of Egyptian military forces. The incident took place when security forces were on patrol to arrest terrorists in a village south of the town of Sheikh Zuweid, located in North Sinai.

A member of the Egyptian security forces stands guard next to a damaged bus following a roadside bomb blast which wounded 20 Egyptian policemen on the outskirts of North Sinai's provincial capital of el-Arish on July 9, 2015. (AFP photo)

Terrorist attacks have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers across the troubled peninsula in recent years.

The Egyptian military has been engaged in operations to quell acts of terrorism in the Sinai Peninsula. It views the volatile region as a sanctuary for extremists who use it as a safe haven.

The Sinai Peninsula has been under a state of emergency since October 2014, following a deadly terrorist attack that claimed the lives of 33 soldiers.

Over the past years, militants have been carrying out anti-government activities and deadly attacks, taking advantage of the turmoil caused in Egypt after democratically-elected President Mohamed Morsi was ousted by the military in July 2013.

Militants from the Takfiri Velayat Sinai group, previously known as Ansar Bait al-Maqdis, have claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, mainly targeting the army and police. In November 2014, the group pledged allegiance to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

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