Bomb kills two soldiers in Egypt's Sinai -sources

A roadside bomb killed two Egyptian soldiers on Tuesday during a patrol near the town of Sheikh Zuweid, medical and security sources said, the latest in a string of attacks in the Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel and the Suez Canal.

Deadly attacks mostly targeting security forces have been concentrated in North Sinai, the epicenter of an Islamist insurgency seeking to topple the Cairo government, though blasts have occurred across the country in the past two years.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Militants based in North Sinai have killed hundreds of soldiers and police since the army toppled Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 following mass protests against his rule.

Sinai is home to Egypt's most dangerous Islamist group, Sinai Province. Formerly known as Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, the organization has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, the ultra-hardline Sunni group which controls large parts of Iraq and Syria.

Six soldiers were also wounded in Tuesday's attack, the security sources said.

 

 

REUTERS