Egyptian warplanes killed 25 Islamist militants in North Sinai on Saturday, security sources said, as President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi visited the province after a major escalation of conflict there.
The sources said the air strikes hit militant targets near the town of Sheikh Zuweid, destroying weapons and explosives caches.
They also said security forces had found about half-a-tonne of explosives in a tunnel on the border between the Sinai and Gaza.
Mr. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi inspected soldiers and police in El-Arish, the provincial capital, on Saturday, the presidency said in statement.
Mr. Sisi, dressed in military garb for the first time since becoming president just over a year ago, told troops that at least 200 militants had been killed in the fighting in recent days, but added: “For me to say that things are under control is not enough, things are totally stable. I tell Egyptians ... the size of forces here [in Sinai] is one percent of Egypt’s army.”
Coordinated assault
Militants launched a coordinated assault on military checkpoints in North Sinai on Wednesday, leading to day-long fighting which left more than 100 militants and 17 soldiers dead, the army said.
Egyptian air strikes killed 23 Islamist militants on Thursday, security sources said.
Epicentre of insurgency
North Sinai is the epicentre of an insurgency in which an Islamic State-affiliated group called Sinai Province is most active. The Sinai Peninsula borders the Gaza Strip, Israel and the Suez Canal.
The insurgency, aimed at toppling the Cairo government, has intensified since the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi after mass protests against his rule in 2013.
On Friday, Sinai Province said in a statement posted on Twitter by supporters it had launched three Grad rockets towards “occupied Palestine.” Reuters could not immediately verify the authenticity of the statement.
An Israeli military source said the rockets landed in Israel without causing any casualties and had been fired from Sinai.
