Egypt officials say 19 militants and five troops killed in Sinai

Forces dismantled at least five explosive devices and destroyed two vehicles

Egyptian security officials inspect the site of a bomb blast in Cairo in July 2015. Militants have killed police officers and bombed police headquarters in the capital. Reuters

The Egyptian military said it killed at least 19 militants in raids and air strikes against an insurgency in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, in clashes that also left at least five fatalities among its troops.

Col Tamer El Rifai said in his statement late on Saturday that the raids and air strikes took place last week in the towns of Bir Al Abed, Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid.

He said forces dismantled at least five explosive devices and destroyed two four-wheel drive vehicles and a storehouse.

The military statement did not specify the number of soldiers killed. Other officials, however, said two officers, including a colonel and a lieutenant, and three conscript soldiers were killed when an explosive device hit their vehicle Saturday while taking part in a campaign against the militants in central Sinai.

Other details about the incident could not be independently corroborated as Egyptian authorities heavily restrict access to that part of Sinai.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

For years, Egypt has been fighting the Sinai affiliate of ISIS and struggling to re-establish control over the restive border region.

The insurgency in Sinai intensified after the military’s 2013 ousting of Mohammed Morsi, a freely elected but divisive president. Morsi was toppled amid mass protests against him, a year after he took office.

Most extremist attacks have occurred in marginalised northern Sinai, but militants have also struck at police officers, troops and other high-profile targets in the mainland.