Egyptian strikes kill 25 militants in two days

An Egyptian MiG-21

09 March 2015 defenceWeb (Reuters)

Egyptian military air strikes have killed 25 Islamist militants in Northern Sinai over the last two days, security sources said, targeting an insurgency that seeks to topple the Cairo government.

On Friday, air raids hit two houses south of the Sinai town of Sheikh Zuweid, killing 10 militants from Ansar Beit al-Maqdis - which renamed itself Sinai Province after pledging allegiance to Islamic State - the sources said.

At least 14 other militants were injured in the strikes. On Thursday, 15 militants were killed when air strikes hit three homes south of Sheikh Zuweid. Reuters could not immediately verify accounts of the attacks and the army spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

North Sinai is the epicentre of an Islamist militant insurgency that has killed hundreds of police and soldiers since then army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi in July 2013 after mass protests against his rule.

Egypt has launched a crackdown in Sinai and systematically repressed Muslim Brotherhood supporters and other political opponents across the country. The Brotherhood says it is committed to peaceful activism.

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