A truck-bomb attack on a checkpoint in the city of El-Arish in Egypt's northern Sinai has killed at least seven policemen and one civilian, according to security officials and medical sources.

Police officials said a suicide bomber drove the truck packed with explosives into El-Matafe checkpoint and armed men then opened fire on the security post on Monday.

Egypt's interior ministry said in a statement that security forces were able to "fight off" the attack, killing five assailants and wounding three others.

Six policemen and six civilians were also wounded.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the truck bombing, but an armed movement in the rugged and thinly populated Sinai Peninsula has gained pace since the military toppled President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, in mid-2013.

Since then, hundreds of police officers and soldiers have been killed in attacks.

In November, a car bomb attack on a checkpoint in Sinai killed eight soldiers.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group's Egyptian branch in the Sinai Peninsula has also carried out several such attacks over the past two years.

The Sinai Peninsula borders Israel and Palestine's Gaza Strip.</s>JERUSALEM - A truck rammed into a group of Israeli soldiers who were disembarking from a bus in Jerusalem on Sunday, killing four people and wounding 15 others, Israeli police and rescue services said.

Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the truck veered off course and rammed into the group in the Armon Hanatziv neighborhood. She said the attacker was shot dead.

Paramedic Chen Lendi Sharon was among the first to arrive on the scene and described 10 bodies trapped beneath the truck.

Israel’s rescue service MDA said the four casualties were in their 20s and included three women and a man. Of the 15 wounded, one was in serious condition.

Israel’s police chief Roni Alsheich told reporters the attacker was from an Arab neighborhood in east Jerusalem and forces had no advance warning. He refused to elaborate and a gag order was placed on further details pending an investigation.

It would rank as one of the deadliest in a more than yearlong wave of Palestinian shooting, stabbing and vehicular attacks against Israelis that had slowed of late. Sunday’s incident marks the first Israeli deaths in three months.

Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 40 Israelis and two visiting Americans. During that time, 230 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire. Israel says most of the Palestinians killed were attackers while the rest died in clashes. The Palestinians and rights groups have accused Israel of using excessive force in some confrontations.

Israel says the violence is driven by a Palestinian campaign of incitement, while Palestinians say it’s the result of nearly 50 years of Israeli occupation and dwindling hopes for an independent state.</s>At least eight members of security forces killed in an attack on a police checkpoint in El-Arish.

A truck bomb attack on a checkpoint in the city of El-Arish in Egypt's northern Sinai has killed at least seven policemen and one civilian, security officials and medical sources said.

Police officials said a suicide bomber rammed the truck packed with explosives into the El-Matafe checkpoint and gunmen then opened fire on the security post on Monday.

Egypt's interior ministry said in a statement that security forces were able to "fight off" the attack, killing five assailants and wounding three others.

Six policemen and six civilians were also wounded in the attack.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the truck bombing but an armed movement in the rugged and thinly populated Sinai Peninsula has gained pace since the military toppled President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, in mid-2013 following mass protests against his rule.

Since then, hundreds of police officers and soldiers have been killed by armed groups.

In November, a car bomb attack on a checkpoint in Sinai killed eight soldiers.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group's Egyptian branch in the Sinai Peninsula has also carried out several such attacks over the past two years.</s>At least eight members of security forces killed in an attack on a police checkpoint in El-Arish.

A truck bomb attack on a checkpoint in the city of El-Arish in Egypt's northern Sinai has killed at least eight policemen, security officials and medical sources said.

Police officials said a suicide bomber rammed the truck packed with explosives into the checkpoint and gunmen then opened fire on the security post on Monday.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the truck bombing.

But an armed movement in the rugged and thinly populated Sinai Peninsula has gained pace since the military toppled President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, in mid-2013 following mass protests against his rule.

Since then, hundreds of police officers and soldiers have been killed by armed groups.

In November, a car bomb attack on a checkpoint in Sinai killed eight soldiers.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group's Egyptian branch in the Sinai Peninsula has also carried out several such attacks over the past two years.</s>Islamic State has claimed responsiblilty for an attack on a security checkpoint in Egypt’s North Sinai province which killed at least eight people on Monday, the group’s Amaq news agency said on Tuesday.

“A surprise attack launched by Islamic State fighters on a checkpoint west of Arish city in North Sinai followed the detonation of a car bomb parked by an Islamic State fighter,” Amaq reported.

The interior ministry on Monday said the militants targeted the checkpoint in the city of el-Arish with a garbage truck filled with explosives but that security forces killed the driver and safely detonated the truck bomb. The ministry released footage showing an attacker driving a white garbage truck and then slumping over after being shot.

It said that seven police officers and one civilian were killed and that security forces killed five of the attackers. In addition, six officers, six civilians and three attackers were wounded in the shootout, the ministry said.

Security and medical officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters, said the truck bomb destroyed a nearby police building.</s>Islamic State (IS) on Tuesday claimed responsibility for two attacks on Monday in the North Sinai city of Al-Arish, which left nine people dead.

The Ammaq news agency, which is affiliated to IS, published a statement claiming their troops killed 25 police officers during the attack that targeted two checkpoints in El-Matafy and El-Masieed suburbs in southern Al-Arish.

“An explosives-laden vehicle was parked and detonated near the checkpoint,” the statement read. “The explosion was followed by intensive attacks from IS fighters who blew up two armoured vehicles and killed all who were not killed by the initial explosion.”

On Monday, two attacks hit two police checkpoints in Al-Arish. Both attacks left eight police officers and one civilian dead, according to a statement issued by the Interior Ministry’s official Facebook page.

The first attack which targeted El-Matafy (fire brigade station) security checkpoint at dawn on Monday was carried out by nearly 20 militants who tried to control the checkpoint south of Al-Arish, the statement explained.

Meanwhile, the statement noted that the militants first opened fire using AK-47 assault rifles against forces stationed in the checkpoint. They also used improvised explosive devices (IEDs), a vehicle laden with explosives, and rocket-propelled grenade launchers (RPGs).

Contrary to the IS statement, the Interior Ministry statement said that security forces managed to detonate the vehicle before it got close to the checkpoint, and in the ensuing gunfight security forces killed five militants and injured three others.

“The first attack resulted in the death of one low-ranking police officer and six conscripts, in addition to a civilian who was accidently close to the checkpoint,” the statement said. “The attack left six conscripts and six civilians wounded, all of which have been transferred to hospitals.”

The Interior Ministry published a video that showed a militant who was driving a garbage truck before being fired upon and killed.

In the same context, Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi continued on Tuesday his periodic video conference meetings with a number of conscripts, officers, and leaders from the armed forces. The meetings started with a minute of silence in honour of the victims of the Al-Arish attacks, according to a statement issued from the official army spokesperson.

During the meeting, Sedki expressed his deep condolences to the families of the victims of the attacks.

The Minister of Defence also praised efforts exerted by members of the third field army in confronting terrorism and foiling a terrorist attack that targeted a number of army checkpoints.</s>Police in Egypt set off a controlled explosion of a bomb-rigged car in the town of El-Arish in north of the restive Sinai peninsula. ― Reuters picCAIRO, Jan 9 ― A truck bomb attack on an Egyptian security checkpoint in the Sinai Peninsula killed at least eight policemen today, officials and state media said.

Police officials said a suicide bomber rammed a truck packed with explosives into the checkpoint in the north Sinai city of El-Arish and gunmen then opened fire on the security post.

The Islamic State group’s Egyptian branch in the Sinai Peninsula has carried out several such attacks over the past two years.

Eight people were also wounded in the attack, state newspaper Al-Ahram reported on its website.

Jihadists have killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen since the 2013 military overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi, which unleashed a bloody crackdown on his supporters.

Most of the attacks have taken place in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip.

In November, a car bomb attack on a checkpoint in Sinai killed eight soldiers. ― AFP</s>El-Arish, Egypt: A suicide bomber driving a garbage truck packed with explosives rammed his vehicle into an Egyptian security checkpoint outside a police building in northern Sinai on Monday, killing at least nine people and wounding 10, officials said.

According to security and medical officials, the attack in the city of el-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula was followed by smaller explosions as militants wearing black masks fired rocket-propelled grenades at the troops around the checkpoint.

Three floors of the police building were blown out, the officials said, adding that so far nine bodies have been retrieved from the rubble but that they feared the death toll could rise further. Ten wounded were taken to hospital.

At the checkpoint, two officers survived unharmed, the officials said. There were unconfirmed reports that a number of security personnel were seized and abducted by the gunmen.

The garbage truck had been stolen days earlier from the municipality of el-Arish, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to reporters.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which bore all the hallmarks of Egypt's Islamic State affiliate. The militant group has carried out scores of attacks against security forces in the volatile northern Sinai and elsewhere in the country. The Egyptian army has struggled over the past few years to contain the insurgency.</s>Six police officers were killed and ten injured in an attack on a checkpoint near the town of el-Arish in northern Sinai in Egypt, local media reported on Monday.

CAIRO (Sputnik) — The attackers detonated a car bomb at the checkpoint, according to the Egyptian newspaper El Fagr.

Egypt has been fighting a rise in terrorist attacks in northern Sinai since the army, led by President Abdel Fattah Sisi, overthrew then Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013. Police and security forces have been the target of deadly attacks by Islamists in the area.</s>A suicide bomber driving a garbage truck packed with explosives rammed his vehicle into an Egyptian security checkpoint outside a police building in northern Sinai on Monday, killing at least 10 people and wounding 22, officials said.

According to security and medical officials, the attack in the city of el-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula was followed by smaller explosions as militants wearing black masks fired rocket-propelled grenades at the troops around the checkpoint.

Three floors of the police building were blown out, the officials said, adding that so far, bodies of 10 people — all but one of them policemen — have been retrieved from the rubble but that they fear the death toll could rise further. The wounded were taken to hospital.

At the checkpoint, two officers survived unharmed, the officials said. There were unconfirmed reports that a number of security personnel were seized and abducted by the gunmen.

The garbage truck had been stolen days earlier from the municipality of el-Arish, the officials said, adding that the militants had built in metal plates to enforce the truck. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

Later Monday, Egypt's Interior Ministry released footage showing an attacker driving what appears to be a white garbage truck. The video shows the attacker collapsing after coming under fire.

In a statement on the ministry's Facebook page, the security authorities claim they managed to foil the attack before the car bomb exploded at the checkpoint and that security forces killed five of the attackers and wounded three others. It also said seven policemen were killed, along with civilian, and that six policemen and six civilians were wounded.

The ministry also said a second group of militants tried to carry out an attack on another checkpoint, also in el-Arish, but came under heavy gunfire and were forced to flee. It said that attack killed one policeman. It wasn't immediately possible to reconcile the two accounts.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for Monday's attack, which bore all the hallmarks of Egypt's Daesh affiliate.

The militant group has carried out scores of attacks against security forces in the volatile northern Sinai and elsewhere in the country. The Egyptian army has struggled over the past few years to contain the insurgency.
An attack by several gunmen and a truck bomb on a police checkpoint in El-Arish leaves 13 dead and 15 wounded, including the attackers.