Two mortar shells fall in the vicinity of North Sinai governorate's building

Tuesday 04-11-2014 09:11 PM
Two mortar shells fall in the vicinity of North Sinai governorate's building

Smoke rises as a house is blown up during a military operation by Egyptian security forces in the Egyptian city of Rafah, near the border with southern Gaza Strip November 3, 2014. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

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NORTH SINAI, Nov 4 (Aswat Masriya) - Two mortar shells fell near a security camp in North Sinai's al-Arish, in the vicinity of the governorate's building on Tuesday evening, security sources said.

The sources, who preferred to remain anonymous, said the first shell landed near the Arish Zoo. A house near the zoo caught fire as a result. The second shell landed near the Arish Museum, they added.

Security forces are combing the area to search for other explosive devices which might have been planted near the explosion site, the sources said.

A military source told Aswat Masriya the explosion caused no injuries.

Egypt's security forces have intensified their measures in North Sinai in reaction to repeated militant attacks that target army and police officials, which rose significantly since the ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi last year. The attacks soon expanded to other areas of the country, including the capital.

At least 30 military personnel were killed in a suicide blast which targeted a security checkpoint in Sinai's Sheikh Zuweid on October 24. The explosion also caused damage to two military vehicles. 

Shortly afterwards, a separate attack by unidentified gunmen on a security checkpoint in Arish killed three more security personnel.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi declared a three-month state of emergency and a nighttime curfew in parts of the Sinai Peninsula in response to the deadly attacks.

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