(MENAFN- Arab Times) His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Wednesday sent a cable of condolences to Egypt's President Abdelfatah el-Sisi over victims of the attacks that targeted military checkpoints in Sinai Peninsula. Scores of military and police personnel were killed or injured in today's terrorist attacks.
In his cable, His Highness the Amir reiterated Kuwait's strong condemnation of such heinous terrorist attacks that target security and stability in Egypt, praying for speedy recovery for those wounded. His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- Sabah and His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah sent similar cables to President el-Sisi. Islamic State militants launched a wide-scale coordinated assault on several military checkpoints in Egypt's North Sinai on Wednesday in which 100 people were killed, security sources said, the largest attack yet in the insurgency-hit province.
Egyptian army F-16 jets and Apache helicopters strafed the region that lies within the Sinai Peninsula, a strategic area located between Israel, the Gaza Strip and the Suez Canal. It was the second high-profile attack in Egypt this week.
On Monday, the prosecutor-general was killed in a car bombing in Cairo. The attacks raise questions about the government's ability to contain a Sinai-based insurgency that has already killed hundreds of police and soldiers.
Islamic State's Egyptian affiliate, Sinai Province, claimed responsibility for the Sinai attacks in a Twitter statement. The army said five checkpoints were attacked by about 70 militants and that soldiers had destroyed three landcruisers fitted with antiaircraft guns. Without giving a breakdown, the army spokesman said the death toll among soldiers and attackers had increased. The militants have previously carried out some big attacks that have killed scores of security personnel but in general they have focused on smaller-scale targets. Wednesday's incident, in which fighting raged for more than eight hours, marks the biggest onslaught yet.
The exact breakdown of identities of those killed was not immediately clear. Security sources said at least 36 people, including soldiers, policemen and civilians were killed and 38 militants were also killed. The army spokesman first said 10 soldiers were killed or wounded and 22 attackers were killed. He later added that the number of deaths had increased on both sides. Doctor Osama el-Sayed of El- Arish General Hospital in the provincial capital said 30 bodies had been brought in, "some of whom were wearing army fatigues". Most of the action seemed to be in the Sheikh Zuweid town. Security sources said militants had surrounded a police station in Sheikh Zuweid and had planted bombs around it to prevent forces from leaving.
They also said the militants had planted bombs along a road between Sheikh Zuweid and an army camp to prevent the movement of any army supplies or reinforcements. The militants seized two armoured vehicles, weapons and ammunition, the sources said. Witnesses and security sources also reported hearing two explosions in the nearby town of Rafah, which borders Gaza. The sources said all roads leading to Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid were shut down and residents were staying in their homes. The insurgency, which is seeking to topple the Cairo government has intensified since 2013, when then-army chief Abdel Fattah el- Sisi removed President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood after mass protests against his rule.
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