7 suspected militants killed in North Sinai - military source

Wednesday 25-02-2015 11:27 AM
7 suspected militants killed in North Sinai - military source
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NORTH SINAI, Feb 25 (Aswat Masriya) - Seven suspected militants were killed and 12 more were injured in aerial raids on North Sinai's Sheikh Zuweid and Rafah neighbourhoods early Wednesday, a military source said.

The source told Aswat Masriya that Appaches shelled three meeting points of Egypt's deadliest militant group, Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, in Sheikh Zuweid, as well as other strongholds for the group in south Rafah.

Security forces had killed five suspected militants on Tuesday after shelling a tank south of al-Arish.

Militancy has surged in Egypt since military ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in July 2013 following mass protests against his rule, with the Sinai Peninsula being the most heavily affected part of the country. Attacks have also taken place in other parts, including Cairo.

Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis changed its name to Sinai Province after pledging allegiance to Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq last November. The Sinai-based group has claimed responsibility for some of the deadliest attacks on security personnel in the peninsula.

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