Sinai Bomb Kills 6 Egyptian Police Officers
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A bomb explosion killed six police officers near the border town of Rafah in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, in an attack that bore the hallmarks of a local al-Qaeda-inspired group, Egyptian security officials said.
Security officials said the bomb was hidden deep under the asphalt of a highway, in an area called Wadi Halfa, where a joint police and army force was passing early in the morning on Tuesday.
The official said the blast also injured two police officers, shredding the armoured vehicle and tearing the bodies of the police fatalities.
The force was assigned to detect explosives but it was unclear if they were searching for them at the time of the attack, Al Jazeera reported.
No further details were immediately available. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorised to brief the media.
Armed rebel groups have escalated attacks over the past year against police and army personnel in retaliation for the military-led overthrow of President Mohamed Mursi after mass demonstrations against him.
Suicide bombings, assassinations and road side bombs have claimed the lives of dozens of policemen and army officers.
Recently, an armed group beheaded men they accused of spying on them for Israeli intelligence.
While authorities blame Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood group over the violence, another al-Qaeda inspired group known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has claimed responsibility for most of the major attacks.
