Islamic militants affiliated with the self-styled Islamic State on Wednesday unleashed an unprecedented wave of attacks, including suicide bombings, on Egyptian army checkpoints and a police station in the restive north of the Sinai Peninsula.
The latest series of attacks have killed at least 36 people, mostly troops, with the toll expected to rise, security and military officials said.
“It’s war, the battle is ongoing. It’s unprecedented, in the number of terrorists involved and the type of weapons they are using. Militants took over rooftops and fired rocket-propelled grenades at a police station in Sheikh Zuweid after mining its exits to block reinforcements,” a police colonel said.
The dead included several civilians, according to security and medical officials, who said 38 militants were also killed as they battled soldiers and policemen in the North Sinai town of Sheikh Zuweid.
The militants also took soldiers captive and seized several armored vehicles, they added, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
In a statement released online, IS claimed it had carried out a multi-pronged assault that involved three suicide bombers.
The attacks came just two days after the assassination in Cairo of the country’s top prosecutor, Hisham Barakat and just one day after President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi vowed to step up a two-year crackdown on militants.
