An attack by militants on an army checkpoint in the turbulent north of the Sinai Peninsula killed and wounded 15 Egyptian soldiers on Saturday, marking the deadliest attack against security forces in the region since the start of a major military operation a year ago.
Chief military spokesman Col Tamer El Rifaai said soldiers at the checkpoint exchanged fire with the attackers, killing seven of them, and that forces were pursuing more of the suspects in the area.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Saturday’s early morning attack, which bore the hallmarks of the extremist ISIS now spearheading the insurgency in rugged and largely remote northern Sinai.
A brief statement issued by Col El Rifaai did not provide the location of the checkpoint or give a breakdown of the wounded and killed among the 15 casualties. He only said that they included an officer and soldiers of various ranks, an unusual phrasing by the military in reporting casualties.
Security officials, however, said the checkpoint was located inside a dense orchard of olive trees 2-3 kilometres away from both the coastal city of El Arish and the city’s airport. They described it as a sneak attack in which the militants stealthily reached a point close to the checkpoint before opening fire.
Unlike most previous attacks targeting checkpoints, the officials explained, Saturday’s attack did not commence with a suicide car bombing or a barrage of rocket-propelled grenades.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.