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Egypt Kills 16 Gunmen as Soldiers of Terror Attack Laid to Rest | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Family members attend the funeral of officer Khaled al-Maghrabi, who was killed during a suicide bomb attack on an army checkpoint in Sinai, in his hometown Toukh, Al Qalyubia Governorate, north of Cairo, Egypt 8 July, 2017. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany


Egypt’s Interior Ministry said on Saturday its forces had killed 14 gunmen in Ismailia province, adding that they were linked to recent attacks against the security forces in Northern Sinai.

At least 23 Egyptian soldiers were killed when suicide car bombs tore through two military checkpoints in North Sinai on Friday, an attack claimed by ISIS. It was one of the bloodiest assaults on security forces in years.

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that gunmen had opened fire on police as they approached a desert training camp for militants in Ismailia. The officers returned fire, killing 14 militants, five of whom have been identified so far.

The camp was used to “subject (recruits) to military training programs on the use of various types of firearms and
manufacture explosive devices,” the statement said.

In a separate statement, the ministry said its forces killed two men described as fugitive terrorists in an exchange of gunfire in the city of Giza.

Funerals were held on Saturday for the dead soldiers of the North Sinai attack.

Police and provincial officials said the bodies had arrived in the mainland for funerals in 11 provinces.