Cairo - The Egyptian police killed two militants loyal to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group, the Interior Ministry said in a statement on Sunday. The two militants, Mohamed Mekki and Mohamed Moftah, aged 23 and 24, were killed in a shootout with the police who raided their hiding place in Qalioubiya Province near the capital Cairo, the statement said, adding that the forces found nine guns and ammunition in their possession. According to the police, the pair are leading members of the Hasm Movement, an active Islamist militant group referred to as the armed wing of the Brotherhood. Hasm has claimed responsibility for a number of terrorist attacks that killed several policemen in Egypt. Over the past few months, the Egyptian police have killed dozens of militants in similar raids in Giza, Cairo, Ismailia, North Sinai and other provinces across the country. Egypt has been fighting growing terror activities after the military toppled former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 in response to mass protests against his one-year rule and his Brotherhood group.
