Egypt: 8 Dead, 25 Injured in Sinai’s Blasts
By Staff Writer
One soldier and seven civilians including two children were killed in two successive mortar attacks by militants in El-Arish northern Sinai region at a military post, near the border with Israel, late Sunday July 13, the Interior Ministry and security officials said.
The military post is located near a compound of residential buildings in the al-Salam district with the main security headquarters and the local government offices also located in the same area.
A supermarket, pharmacy and a residential building also were hit by mortar fire, said security officials.
Samy Anwar, the head of el-Arish hospital, said seven civilians were killed in the attack, including a 10-year old girl and a 12-year old boy. He said 24 others were wounded, including an 11-year-old girl.
The attack comes as Israel’s offensive against the neighboring Gaza Strip enters its sixth day. More than 160 Palestinians have been killed. Palestinian militant groups have fired rockets at Israel but caused no deaths. Despite international calls for a cease-fire, the violence showed no sign of easing.
Militants in Sinai have also fired rockets at Israel in support of Palestinian groups in the past days. Officials here said they foiled a new attempt to fire rockets at Israel Sunday.
Egypt has been hit by an Islamist insurgency led by Sinai-based militants, who have mainly targeted security forces since last year’s army ouster of elected Islamist President Mohamed Morsi last July, after mass protests against his rule.
The move was followed by a crackdown on Islamists in which hundreds of street protesters were killed and thousands of Islamist leaders and activists were jailed.
Hundreds of soldiers and police officers have been killed in those attacks.
Militants have found a haven in northern Sinai, particularly after the turmoil in Egypt since 2011.
The military has waged an offensive against the militants reducing the attacks against troops. But the militant groups have increasingly pushed their attacks toward Cairo and other provinces in Egypt.
Egypt’s newly elected President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the former army chief who orchestrated Morsi’s overthrow, has promised to fight what he calls terrorism and restore stability to the Arab world’s most populous state.