Al Arish: Islamist militants attacked an army checkpoint in northern Sinai near the border with Gaza early on Wednesday, killing an officer, officials said.
The attack came as Egypt’s Daesh affiliate, which is based in the restive peninsula, claimed responsibility for two attacks the previous day.
In Wednesday’s attack, militants opened fire on the checkpoint in Al Baraham near the border town of Rafah, triggering a shoot-out that killed 26-year-old Captain Ayman Hassan, said medical and security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media.
Meanwhile, the Daesh affiliate in Egypt — previously known as Ansar Bait Al Maqdis — claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s attacks that killed two and wounded dozens in restive Sinai. In one of the attacks, a suicide bomber drove a stolen water tanker packed with explosives up to the police compound in the city of Al Arish. His refusal to slow down at the gate prompted police to fire at the vehicle, setting off the explosives inside.
Egypt has been battling an Islamist insurgency in northern Sinai for years, but attacks against army and police there have dramatically increased since the 2013 overthrow of Islamist President Mohammad Mursi.
The military has undertaken a major offensive against militants in restive Sinai — where Egypt’s Daesh affiliate is based — and declared a state of emergency, along with a dusk-to-dawn curfew.
