News / Egypt

Roadside bomb leaves two Egyptian policemen dead in Sinai

Saturday, 27 February 2016 7:22 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 27 February 2016 7:22 PM ]

Egyptian residents and emergency personnel gather at the site of a car bomb explosion that targeted a police station in North Sinai's provincial capital of el-Arish on April 12, 2015. © AFP

At least two Egyptian police officers have been killed and two others injured when a roadside bomb explosion struck their armored vehicle in the country’s volatile Sinai Peninsula, security and medical sources say.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said an explosive device targeted the policemen’s car south of the border town of Rafah, located 340 kilometers (211 miles) east of the capital, Cairo, on Saturday.

No individual or group has claimed responsibility for the act of violence yet. Security forces have launched an investigation into the attack.

The attack came only three days after at least 12 members of the Takfiri Velayat Sinai terrorist group were killed and 10 others injured during counter-terrorism operations south of Rafah.

Egyptian troopers also clashed with the extremists south of the town of Sheikh Zuweid, situated 334 kilometers (214 miles) northeast of the capital, and detained 38 of them.

Sinai Peninsula has been under a state of emergency since October 2014, following a deadly terrorist attack that claimed the lives of 33 soldiers.

Over the past years, militants have been carrying out anti-government activities and deadly attacks, taking advantage of the turmoil caused in Egypt after democratically-elected President Mohamed Morsi was ousted by the military in July 2013.

Militants from the Takfiri Velayat Sinai group, previously known as Ansar Bait al-Maqdis, have claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, mainly targeting the army and police. In November 2014, the group pledged allegiance to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, which is mainly wreaking havoc in Iraq and Syria.

The government in Cairo views the volatile region as a safe haven for terrorists.

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