In March, Isis gunmen killed 15 policemen in an attack on a checkpoint near the El-Arish, the provincial capital of North Sinai. Jihadists, including Islamic State group militants, have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers in attacks, mostly in the Sinai Peninsula and also in and around Cairo. Gunmen shot dead eight plainclothes Egyptian policemen in the Helwan district south of Cairo, the interior ministry said on Sunday. Egyptian criminal gangs have also killed policemen in shoot outs, but the attack bore the hallmarks of jihadists who have waged an insurgency since the military overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013. Police later tracked down the top Isis operative in Cairo, who was linked to the Croat’s murder, and killed him in a shoot out.

Source: The Guardian May 07, 2016 21:07 UTC