Egypt’s armed forces, on Sunday, said it killed 89 “very dangerous takfiri elements” in North Sinai but did not say when the operation took place.
In a statement released on Facebook by the General Command of the Armed Forces on Sunday, the army while describing the “qualitative operations against terrorist elements” as a success, said: “as a result of the valiant combat efforts of our armed forces in the areas of operations, eight of the armed forces’ heroes have been martyred and wounded.”
73 machine guns, 140 magazines, 5,606 bullets, 34 wireless communications devices, a night-vision and camera-equipped drone, cell phones, a laptop and cash were recovered from the terrorist, the statement said.
The statement said the army dismantled 404 explosive devices and four suicide belts used by takfiri elements during the operations, adding that the army also destroyed 52 vehicles and 59 motorbikes.
According to the statement, air forces and border guards destroyed 200 vehicles, some of which were loaded with arms and ammunition, when they attempted to breach the western and southern borders of the country.
Libya borders Egypt from the west and Sudan borders it from the south.
Following the overthrow of President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in 2013, attacks by militants who claim to be muslims spread in Northern Sinai. More than 1,000 civilians and hundreds of policemen and soldiers have died in the attacks.
In South Sinai, the Armed Forces launched a major campaign to eradicate narcotic crops, destroying 842 farms of Bango and hydro-narcotic plants, as well as 1,114 farms of cannabis plants, according to the statement.
Men of “.. the Armed Forces’ affirm that they are proceeding with determination to uproot what remains of the roots of terrorism and extremism and to continue construction and development in all parts of Egypt,” the statement said.
