Three police conscripts were killed and 13 others injured Tuesday after unidentified assailants hit a convoy with a rocket-propelled grenade in North Sinai, the Interior Ministry announced.
Three civilians were also injured after they were hit by shrapnel in North Sinai’s town of Sheikh Zuwayed, where Islamists have carried out scores of attacks on security forces in recent months.
The injured policemen were transferred to a nearby hospital while security forces combed the area for the attackers, according to the statement.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which is the latest in a string of attacks on security forces and military institutions in Egypt’s restive Sinai Peninsula.
Egypt has witnessed a significant rise in militancy since the military-backed ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 following mass protests against his rule. According to the Interior Ministry, militant attacks have killed more than 500 security personnel since then.
The military launched a major offensive against the jihadists in September, claiming it killed scores in an attempt to restore order in the peninsula which borders Israel and the Gaza Strip.
