Two people, a policeman and an Islamist militant, were killed on Sunday in a fire exchange in Egypt's governorate of Sharqiya, security sources said as reported by the state news agency.

The policeman was shot dead when unknown assailants attacked a security checkpoint on a road leading to Zagazig, eight other police conscripts were injured in the shootout.

The perpetrators managed to escape except for two of them, who were arrested while in possession of firearms, live ammunition and an al-Qaeda flag, the security sources said.