In Egypt, three policemen were killed and four wounded in an attack on a checkpoint in Ismailia on the Suez Canal. Security sources spoke of a “terrorist attack”, the first of its kind in an Egyptian city for several years, except in the Sinai peninsula, where jihadist groups are rampant.
As a security source said, two cars approached a checkpoint in a residential area of the city and two assailants opened fire on the policemen. Officers responded, killing one of the assailants while the other managed to escape.
The same source said the attack was likely a “terrorist act,” describing it as the first of its kind in nearly three years in mainland Egypt, which has largely been spared the insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula.
In recent years, attacks against the security forces have been concentrated in the Sinai, where jihadists affiliated with the Islamic State continue to operate. In May, 11 soldiers were killed in an attack in West Sinai.