Policeman shot dead in Sharqiya hours after Sinai attacks

A policeman was shot dead in the Nile Delta governorate of Sharqiya at the hands of unidentified assailants, police sources reported on Saturday.

Ali Amin, a 37-year-old policeman, was reportedly shot on Friday night in the town of Abu Kabir, and later died from his injuries, according to state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper.

The fatal shooting took place hours after two deadly attacks in North Sinai claimed the lives of at least 31 military personnel on Friday evening, two of whom hailed from Sharqiya governorate, and were buried in their local villages on Saturday, with military generals in attendance. The governorate declared three days of mourning for the deceased soldiers.

According to the privately owned Youm 7 news portal, three masked assailants on a motorcycle were responsible for shooting Amin. Citing Sharqiya’s police chief, Brigadier General Sameh al-Kilany, the newspaper claimed the deceased policeman had been working for the security apparatus. Amin is said to have been shot as he was heading home from work.

Prosecutors from the office of the district attorney in Sharqiya are presently conducting forensic examinations on Amin’s body, in the hope of identifying the firearms and the culprits responsible for his death.

Several policemen and officers are reported to have been killed in Sharqiya since the ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, and many supporters of the ousted Islamist president have also been killed or arrested at the hands of security forces.

According to Al-Ahram, at least 19 police personnel have been killed in the governorate since July 3, while Youm 7 says more than 11 police personnel have fallen as “martyrs” since this date.