Two army personnel killed in Sharqiya attack

Unidentified gunmen shot and killed an army officer and soldier in the Delta governorate of Sharqiya on Tuesday evening, while another officer and one conscript were injured in the shooting, reported the state news agency MENA.

The assailants fled the scene after using automatic weaponry to attack the army vehicle carrying four military personnel, MENA quoted a security source as saying. The conscript is reportedly in critical condition, while security was tightened in the surrounding areas.

In another incident, Reuters reported that one man was killed in clashes between supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsi and unknown people in Port Said where rocks were thrown and machine guns and bird-shot were used, medical and security sources said.

Egypt's Grand Mufti Shawky Allam condemned the “brutal terrorist attack” in Sharqiya, saying in a statement Wednesday that these “sinful” attacks against security forces are in religious terms strictly forbidden and represent grave transgressions meant to disturb social order.

Deadly attacks on police stations and military checkpoints have intensified after the ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi by the military on July 3, though mostly centered in Sinai where the military has launched wide counterinsurgency operations.

This is the first such attack on military personnel in the Delta and raises concerns over the spread of attacks outside of the volatile Sinai Peninsula.