News / Egypt

Bombing kills two Egypt policemen in Sinai Peninsula

Monday, 11 July 2016 2:52 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 11 July 2016 5:46 PM ]

Egyptian army special forces man a temporary checkpoint outside Sharm el-Sheikh airport on November 11, 2015. (AFP photo)

At least two Egyptian police forces have been killed and some others injured in a deadly roadside bomb explosion in the restive Sinai Peninsula.

Local media reports said the roadside bomb went off in the restive province of North Sinai on Monday morning and hit an armored vehicle carrying police personnel.

The victims have been identified as brigadier general Ahmed Kamal Mahmous, 49, and conscript Kirollos Wahib Fahmy, 21.

Three other conscripts inside the vehicle were also wounded with shrapnel and taken to a military hospital.

Amaq news agency, which is affiliated to Daesh, said a bomb planted by the terrorist group targeted a police mine clearing vehicle. However, it was not clear whether it was referring to the same incident.

This attack comes a day after the Egyptian soldiers thwarted an ambush on a checkpoint Sunday in the town of Sheikh Zuweid, located in North Sinai Province, killing 14 militants and detaining a dozen others.

Egypt's military has launched a high-scale security operation dubbed "Martyr's Right," against the militants’ positions in northern Sinai. The operation began in September 2015 following coordinated terrorist attacks on several army checkpoints that claimed the lives of 21 soldiers in July 2015.

Over the past several years, Egyptian troops have been engaged in efforts to quell rampant militancy across the Sinai Peninsula.

The battle has led to the deaths of hundreds of troops and militants, including those with the Takfiri Velayat Sinai group.

A member of the Egyptian security forces stands guard next to a damaged bus following a roadside bomb blast on the outskirts of North Sinai’s provincial capital of Arish on July 9, 2015. ©AFP

Previously known as Ansar Bait al-Maqdis, the outfit has pledged allegiance to the Daesh terror group, which is mainly active in Iraq and Syria.

In October 2014, a state of emergency was declared across the whole peninsula following a deadly terrorist attack that claimed the lives of 33 soldiers.

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