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Egyptian police seize a ton of explosives near Egypt-Israel border | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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EL-ARISH, Egypt (AP) – Egyptian police seized one ton of explosives in a mountainous zone of the Sinai Peninsula near the border with Israel, an Egyptian security official said.

The explosives were discovered Friday by Bedouin nomads working as trackers for Egyptian authorities in the Rissan mountain range some 30 kilometers east of the Israeli border, said the security official. He was speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

Security forces and suspected terrorists had clashed in gun battles last May around the area where the explosives were found, the official said. The material was found packed in 15 plastic bags and covered with palm tree leaves, he said.

Hundreds of security forces, tanks and armored vehicles were deployed to the mountain area, searching for suspects. The explosives, mostly TNT, appeared to be of the same kind than what was used in a series of terror attacks on Sinai beach resorts over the past two years, the official said.

Islamic militants have carried out three major bomb attacks in Sinai’s tourist resorts since October 2004, killing a total of 124 people.