NORTH SINAI, Apr 20 (Aswat Masriya) - A military officer and two soldiers were killed and a fourth soldier was injured in a blast which targeted an armoured vehicle in North Sinai's Rafah early Monday, Egypt's armed forces spokesman said.

Spokesman Mohamed Samir offered the armed forces' condolences to the families of those killed in a statement on Monday.

The injured personnel was transferred to hospital, reported MENA.

Militancy inside Egypt has seen a significant rise since July 2013, with the military ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi, following mass protests against his rule. Most attacks target security forces in North Sinai.

Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt's most active militant group, claimed responsibility for most militant attacks carried out in the governorate since 2013. The group pledged allegiance to Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria last November, renaming itself as the "Sinai Province". 

Security forces killed over 300 suspected militants in security campaigns in North Sinai during the months of February and March, the armed forces spokesman announced in a number of separate statements.