The Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis militant group claimed responsibility for a bomb attack which targeted a security checkpoint on the Suez road on Wednesday.Army forces were able to "thwart" a bomb attack on the checkpoint, said armed forces spokesman Mohamed Samir in a statement. The attack, in which a car was detonated near the checkpoint, left the suicide bomber dead.
Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, which changed its name to Sinai Province after pledging allegiance to Islamic State fighters last November, said the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber, in a statement shared by its supporters on twitter.
The checkpoint that was attacked on Wednesday had targeted six "jihadists" last year, the group said.
The army should realise that the militant group shall always "take revenge", it said in its statement, "even if not immediately."
The militant group posted photos of what it said was the attack, saying it caused "big losses" among the armed forces
Aswat Masriya could not independently verify the authenticity of the statement or the photos.
Militancy inside Egypt has seen a significant rise since the military ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in July 2013, following mass protests against his rule. Most attacks target security forces in North Sinai.
On July 1, a number of security checkpoints and a police station in the town of Sheikh Zuweid were attacked by Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis, in what was labelled as a failed attempt to take over the town.
The attacks claimed the lives of 17 army personnel and and no less than 100 militants, according to military figures.
