Nine civilians, including a child, were killed in an early morning shooting in Arish Thursday by North Sinai militants, North Sinai Governor Abdel Fattah Harhour told Egyptian state television.Harhour said that preliminary investigations revealed that all those killed belong to the same family.
According to security sources, unidentified assailants attacked a house in Arish, shooting and killing everyone present there at the time.
The sources confirmed that the deceased family originally fled from Rafah to seek refuge in Arish, adding that "they were killed because of allegations that they were cooperating with security forces."
Security forces have been engaged in a "war against terrorism" since the military ouster of former President Mohamed Mursi in July 2013, following protests against his rule.
The armed forces in coordination with the interior ministry have recently launched a large scale attack to counterinsurgency in North Sinai claiming the lives of more than 500 militants in the area.
A state of emergency has been imposed in North Sinai for over a year since, October 2014, following an attack by North Sinai militants on a checkpoint in Sheikh Zuweid that left more than 30 military personnel dead.
Aswat Masriya cannot independently verify news related to the war on terror, since journalists' access to North Sinai is restricted. Anti-terrorism legislation imposes heavy fines on news organizations that contradict official statements, specifically with regards to the number of casualties.
