CAIRO, Mar 8 (Aswat Masriya) - The Egyptian armed forces said raids carried out in Sinai in the first week of March have killed 70 individuals, whom it described as "terrorists", adding that it arrested over 100.

A statement released on Sunday by armed forces Spokesman Mohamed Samir provided details of the operations, which were carried out in North Sinai's largest city al-Arish, as well as Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid cities. 

Among the operations featured in the statement was the "targeting of a number of headquarters belonging to terrorists", after receiving "confirmed intelligence information on the gathering of a number of terrorists inside, which left 45 terrorists killed..."

A total of 27 headquarters and meeting points were destroyed in the operation.

Additionally, the spokesman said 23 wanted individuals and 95 suspects were arrested.

Other suspected militants were killed by helicopter fire or during a foiled attempt to target a security checkpoint. 

The military spokesman said those killed included a leader in the Sinai based militant group Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt's most notorious militant group. 

Ansar has claimed more responsibility for attacks than any other group in the country. The group pledged allegiance to Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria last November, renaming itself as the "Sinai Province". 

Militancy inside Egypt has seen a significant rise since July 2013, with most attacks targeting security forces in North Sinai.    

Amid intensified campaigns to fight insurgency, especially in North Sinai, the spokesman said on March 1 that the military had killed 173 people, whom it described as "terrorists" in February. 

The February campaign also targeted North Sinai's three major cities and featured helicopter strikes, raids and foiled suicide attempts.