40 killed in Sinai

CAIRO: Egypt’s military said on Monday that 36 jihadists, an officer and three soldiers were killed over five days during a sweeping operation against Islamic State group militants in the Sinai.

The army launched the campaign on February 9 after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is standing in elections this month for a second term, gave it a three-month deadline to crush IS in the Sinai. Security forces "eliminated 30 armed takfiri elements during a shootout with raiding forces" in the northern and central Sinai Peninsula, the military said in a statement.

A police shootout also left six "takfiri elements" dead and destroyed "an extremely dangerous terrorist cell," it added. Over the past five days, soldiers also arrested 345 people "including a number of extremely dangerous takfiri elements and fugitives," it said.