Province of Sinai claims Thursday’s fatal Sinai explosions
The Province of Sinai has claimed responsibility for a series of explosions in North Sinai on Thursday night that is said to have killed at least five conscripts and injured 12 others.
A statement by the Islamic State-afilliated militant group was circulated on Twitter, claiming that five explosive devices targeted military personnel in Sheikh Zuwayed and killed 18 conscripts. But local media reports claimed that five conscripts were killed and 12 others were injured.
Eyewitnesses told privately owned newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm that unidentified assailants planted an explosive device on the Arish-Rafah road, west of Sheikh Zuwayed, which detonated remotely when an armored military vehicle passed by.
The Province of Sinai were formerly known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdes, and pledged allegiance to Islamic State in November 2014. It has claimed responsibility for several attacks on civilian and security targets, including the crash of a Russian plane in Sinai in November that killed all 224 people on board.
On Wednesday, another explosive device was reported to have injured the assistant head of North Sinai security, Yasser Hafez, in Arish.
Several reports over the past month have claimed an escalation in the security forces' anti-terrorism efforts after a bomb killed 15 security personnel in Arish on March 19.
Most recently, privately owned newspaper Al-Watan reported on March 31 that security forces killed 36 alleged terrorists, injured 50 others and arrested six suspects in North Sinai.
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