Roadside bomb kills 6 military conscripts, injures 6 others in North Sinai

A roadside bombing near the North Sinai town of Sheikh Zuwayed claimed the lives of six military conscripts on Tuesday, wounding six others.

Citing military and hospital sources, the Associated Press reported that an explosive device planted by the side of a road had been detonated, hitting an armored military vehicle as it drove by.

Earlier in the day, the state-owned Al-Akhbar news portal had reported that the explosion device killed five conscripts, and injured five.

The newspaper specified that the attack had taken place in the area of Kharrouba, just south of Sheikh Zuwayed, as troops were on a mission to raid a militant stronghold. The injured soldiers were transferred to the nearby Arish Military Hospital, while military troops combed the area in search of the perpetrators.

Meanwhile, security forces in North Sinai killed 16 "dangerous terrorist elements” in the past two days, defusing 24 explosive devices found along roads and highways, according to a video and photos posted on the official webpage of Egypt's military spokesperson.

The video statement added that Armed Forces personnel demolished 19 residences and 16 huts “used by criminal elements." Two jeeps and four motorcycles were also destroyed in the military operations.

North Sinai been under a state of emergency since October 2014. The effects of curfews, terrorist operations, and counter-terrorism campaigns have all had a heavy toll on civilians residing in the governorate.

Egypt’s Armed Forces have forcefully evicted thousands of local residents in the town of Rafah, with estimates compiled by Human Rights Watch suggesting that over 3,000 residences have been demolished in the effort to create a buffer zone between Egypt and Gaza.