Armed forces targeted "terrorist elements" and killed three alleged militants in the North Sinai town of Sheikh Zuweid on Thursday, the military spokesperson said. The spokesperson added that soldiers were also able to destroy the suspected militants' car in a chase. The chase took place after a bomb explosion in the North Sinai town of Sheikh Zuweid killed one security personnel and injured others more Thursday morning, state-owned media had reported. Furthermore, in a Wednesday statement, the military spokesperson had stated that an improvised explosive device killed two military students outside a military academy in Sheikh Zuweid. Weekly confrontations between security forces and militants have been commonplace over the past year, while dozens of civilians have also been killed. A North Sinai resident previously told Daily News Egypt that civilians deaths are a "daily occurrence". According to a Democracy Index report, North Sinai is ranked as the "bloodiest zone" in the country in the first quarter of 2015. Interior Ministry Spokesperson Hany Abdel Latif announced Wednesday that terrorist attacks in Egypt have declined to 65% less "than before".
There have been at least 156 attacks in the Sinai Peninsula, including the kidnap and murder of both security forces and citizens.
