Seventeen alleged militants were killed and 62 suspects arrested in North Sinai Thursday, military spokesperson Mohamed Samir announced.
On Thursday, the 11th day of the large-scale “Martyr’s Right” military operation launched against Islamic State (IS) militants, “Security forces defused 53 explosive devices, burned down 42 terrorists’ hideouts, destroyed 16 vehicles and 13 motorbikes and destroyed seven explosive warehouses in North Sinai,” according to Samir.
A total of 438 suspected militants have been killed as of Thursday night, Samir announced in a Thursday statement.
“The operation, carried out by Egyptian air and naval forces, aims to achieve full control on North Sinai’s towns of Arish, Rafah and Sheikh Zuwayed,” Samir said.
Egypt has witnessed a significant rise in militancy since the military-backed ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 following mass protests against his rule. According to the Interior Ministry, militant attacks have killed more than 500 security personnel since then.
thecairopost.com
