A total of 23 militants have been killed in military airstrikes in North Sinai, Egyptian military sources told Sky News Arabia Saturday.Since Friday noon, Egyptian military air forces launched three airstrikes against militants; nine of them, reportedly the Islamic State (IS) affiliate in Sinai, were killed by an Apache strike in Arish city.
The second strike killed other six militants in al-Toma village of Sheikh Zuweid city in North Sinai, while 8 others were killed in the third strike on the same village, the sources said.
Three days ago, seven alleged takfiris (Islamist militants) were killed and 13 suspects were arrested in security raids in North Sinai’s towns of Sheikh Zuwayed and Rafah, state news agency MENA reported, citing security sources.
On July 1, 2015, 17 military personnel and more than 100 militants were killed in confrontations after Sinai Province, known as Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis before pledging allegiance to IS, attacked 15 military and police checkpoints in North Sinai.
Following the January 2011 Uprising, Islamist militants took a footing in restive North Sinai due to the security vacuum at that time.
Clashes between security forces and militants mounted after the ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013; since then, the military has launched a massive campaign against the militants’ hotbeds.
