A military officer was shot dead on Monday afternoon at a checkpoint in Egypt's Ismailia. The 35 year-old officer, Ahmed Farouq, was fired at by an unknown assailant on his way to afternoon prayers, reported Al-Ahram's Arabic news website. Farouq was transferred to Al-Galaa military hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries. The bullet was fired through his back into the heart. The incident comes a day after two policemen were killed late on Sunday by gunmen in a drive-by shooting on the Cairo-Ismailia road. Last week, three policemen were killed in the Nile Delta city of Mansoura, when four assailants on motorcycles opened fire on them. Egypt has been gripped by unrest since the army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi on 3 July amid mass protests against his rule. Armed attacks on security units have been occurring regularly across the country since then, particularly in strategic areas with a heavy police and military presence, such as the Suez Canal cities and Northern Sinai. More than 100 soldiers have been killed in the Sinai Peninsula since early July, the army said last month. Source : Ahram
