14:44 01/07/2015
Ismailia/Cairo - At least 30 people were killed when Islamist
militants attacked several checkpoints in Egypt's North Sinai on
Wednesday, security and medical sources said, in one of the biggest
coordinated assaults yet in the insurgency-hit province.
Islamic State's Egyptian affiliate, Sinai Province, claimed responsibility for the attacks in a statement on Twitter.
It
was second high-profile action in Egypt this week. On Monday, the
prosecutor-general was killed in a car bombing in Cairo, raising
questions about the government's ability to contain the insurgency.
The
army said five checkpoints were attacked by about 70 militants and that
soldiers had destroyed three landcruisers fitted with anti-aircraft
guns.
Security sources said militants were surrounding a police
station in the town of Sheikh Zuweid and had planted bombs around it to
prevent forces from leaving.
Army supplies
Doctor
Osama el-Sayed of El-Arish General Hospital in the provincial capiatl
said 30 bodies had been brought in, "some of whom were wearing army
fatigues".
The exact breakdown of identities of those killed was
not immediately clear. Security sources had said at least 20 security
personnel were killed and 40 wounded. The army spokesperson said 22 of
the attackers were killed and 10 soldiers were killed or wounded.
Security
sources said the militants had planted bombs along a road between
Sheikh Zuweid and an army camp to prevent the movement of any army
supplies or reinforcements. Meanwhile, Apache helicopters and F-16
planes strafed the area.
The insurgency based in the Sinai is
seeking to topple the Cairo government and has managed to defy one of
the toughest security crackdowns in Egypt's history.
It has
intensified since 2013, when then-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
removed president Mohammed Morsi, an Islamist, after mass protests
against his rule. Hundreds of policemen and soldiers have been killed in
attacks since then.
State of emergency
The most active militant group in the region is Sinai Province, which has pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
It said in Wednesday's statement that it had attacked more than 15 security sites and carried out three suicide bombings.
The
group had urged its followers to escalate attacks during the Islamic
holy month of Ramadan which started in mid-June, though it did not
specify Egypt as a target.
In a recent tactic, Sinai Province has fired rockets at the direction of an airport used by multinational peacekeeping forces.
In
late April, the army extended by three months a state of emergency
imposed in parts of Sinai since October after 33 security personnel were
killed in an attack claimed by Sinai Province.
Peaceful activism
The
army has taken several measures to crush the insurgency. Aside from
bombardments in the region, they have destroyed tunnels into the
Palestinian-ruled Gaza Strip and created a security buffer zone in
northern Sinai.
The army was also digging a trench along the border with Gaza in an effort to prevent smuggling.
The
measures have stoked resentment among some residents, who say they rely
on the smuggling trade through the tunnels and complain of neglect by
the state.
Tuesday also marked the second anniversary of protests that preceded the overthrow of Morsi.
President
Sisi said he would bring in tougher legal measures in coming days after
the killing of the prosecutor, Hisham Barakat, the most senior Egyptian
official to die in such an attack in years.
Sisi's government
does not distinguish between the now-outlawed Brotherhood and other
militants. The Brotherhood says it is committed to peaceful activism.