Nine "terrorists" were killed Wednesday in North Sinai, Army Spokesman Mohamed Samir said.
Five "terrorist" elements were killed in crossfire with army forces, one of whom was monitoring security forces in North Sinai's capital city of al-Arish. Four others were killed while on motorbikes to target the forces in the border town of Rafah, Samir added in a statement on his Facebook page.
19 "terorrists", who took part in executing "terrorist" plans against armed forces and police personnel, were also arrested over the past two days. A total of 41 vehicles, and 44 motorbikes used in "terrorist" operations were also destroyed.
Samir said that 338 "terrorist" hotbeds were destructed, while a hand grenade, empty ammunition boxes, and military uniforms were found.
Six storehouses, two of which were underground, containing incendiary publications against the army and police forces, food supplies, and Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis badges, were also destroyed.
At least 30 military personnel were killed in a suicide blast which targeted a security checkpoint in Sinai's Sheikh Zuweid on October 24. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi declared a three-month state of emergency and a nighttime curfew in parts of the Sinai Peninsula in response to the attack.
An Egyptian naval launch in the Mediterranean port of Damietta was attacked by gunmen in a fishing boat on Wednesday, leaving five navy forces injured and eight others missing. The armed forces said it responded with gunfire, killing at least four assailants and arresting 32 others.
Militants have stepped up attacks targeting security forces in Egypt, particularly in the Sinai Peninsula, since the army's ouster of President Mohamed Mursi in July 2013, which followed mass protests against his rule.
