CAIRO
Ten militants have been killed and 43 others arrested during a security source in the northern quarter of the Sinai Peninsula, the Egyptian army said Wednesday.
In a Facebook statement, army spokesman Ahmed Mohamed Ali said the openings of seven underground tunnels used in smuggling people and goods were destroyed.
According to the spokesman, 85 cottages "used by terrorists to launch attacks against army and police forces" were also burnt down.
The Egyptian army launched a wide-scale military operation in Sinai in September following an unprecedented rise in militant attacks targeting security forces in the northwestern border region, which have left dozens of security personnel dead since last July's ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
The campaign is also aimed at destroying the network of tunnels linking Gaza to Sinai, which constitute a major commercial artery used to bring vital commodities – including food, fuel and building materials – into the besieged coastal enclave.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
