BEVERLY HILLS, July 07, (THEWILL) – Islamic militants, on Friday, unleashed a suicide car bomb and heavy gunfire on an Egyptian military checkpoint in north-eastern Sinai Peninsula which left 10 security troops dead and wounding at least 20 others.
The officials said the blitz attack began when a suicide car bomber rammed his vehicle into a checkpoint at a military compound in the southern Rafah village of El-Barth, followed by heavy gunfire from dozens of masked militants on foot.
The dead included a high ranking Special Forces officer, Col. Ahmed el-Mansi.
Security officials said the militants arrived at the site of the checkpoint, located in a remote, deserted area, in 24 Land Cruiser SUVs and opened fire on the soldiers with machine guns for nearly half an hour.
After the attack, the militants looted the checkpoint, taking weapons and ammunition.
Army Spokesman, Tamer el-Rifai, confirmed the attack on his official Facebook page revealing that 26 army personnel were either killed or injured in the attack, without providing a breakdown.
He also said the army foiled attacks targeting a number of other checkpoints in southern Rafah and that 40 militants were killed.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, Egypt in recent years has been battling a stepped-up insurgency in northern Sinai, mainly by militants from an Islamic State group affiliate.
