Two soldiers and five militants killed in Egypt's North Sinai

The latest attack follows a deadly raid on a security convoy in Egypt's North Sinai on Monday in which 18 police officers were killed.

Egyptian security forces killed 5 militants in a failed attack in the countrys North Sinai province.
AP

Egyptian security forces killed 5 militants in a failed attack in the countrys North Sinai province.

Five militants and two soldiers were killed on Wednesday in clashes that followed a failed attack on a security checkpoint in Egypt's strife-torn North Sinai province, a military spokesman said.

Troops were conducting searches for some of the militants who fled the scene during the clashes, the spokesman said in a statement.

"One of the militants, wearing an explosive vest, attempted to raid one of the security checkpoints and, due to the vigilance of the security forces, the terrorist was killed while the rest of the militants were dealt with," he said.

A Daesh-affiliated insurgency in North Sinai has gathered pace since mid-2013 when the military ousted the country's first democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi.

Hundreds of soldiers, police and civilians have been killed in gun battles and bombing attacks since.

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