Islamic State claims Egypt bomb that killed four soldiers

Egypt is battling an increasingly brazen insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula that has killed hundreds of police officers and soldiers since the army toppled Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in 2013 after mass protests against his rule.

However, a security official in Sinai says the explosion occurred outside a checkpoint in el-Mahdiya village in Rafah, killing the four troops.

Blaming the incident on militants operating in the restive region, Samir further said that three troops were also wounded in Thursday’s bomb blast.

No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing but it bears the hallmark of militants affiliated to the Takfiri ISIL terrorist group. The deaths came as Egypt marks the 1952 revolution, also known as the July 23 revolution.

El-Ashmawi, who officials say is working closely with Sinai-based Ansar Beit al-Maqdis militant group that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State last year, is implicated in a several deadly attacks, including this month’s bombing outside the Italian Consulate in Cairo. Clashes with militants then ensued, killing a fifth soldier, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.