Gunmen kill 5 policemen in Egypt checkpoint attack

Gunmen kill 5 policemen in Egypt checkpoint attack
Thu Jan 23, 2014 11:46:52

Masked gunmen on motorbikes have killed five Egyptian policemen when they opened fire on a checkpoint south of Cairo, the interior ministry said.

The ministry said on Thursday that two policemen were also wounded in the attack in the province of Beni Suef, which came two days ahead of the commemoration of the third anniversary of the 2011 uprising.

According to the report, the assailants fled the scene.

Scores of policemen and soldiers have been killed in bombing and shooting attacks since the military's overthrow of president Mohamed Morsi in July.

The deadliest attacks have been claimed by the Al-Qaeda inspired group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis based in the restive Sinai Peninsula.

The group had claimed a suicide car bombing in December that killed 15 people, mostly policemen, in an attack on security headquarters north of the capital.

Police are preparing a massive security deployment for the January 25 commemoration, with Morsi's supporters calling for protests that could lead to clashes with police, as they have in the past.

NTJ/NJF

string(1016) "[{"id":"1536131","sort":"3155476","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2013/11/20/alalam_635205443343101297_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"Sinai car bomb kills at least 10 Egypt soldiers"} ,{"id":"1538287","sort":"3155477","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2013/11/26/alalam_635210601858899243_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"Egypt arrests 17 Mossad spies"} ,{"id":"1547688","sort":"3155478","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2013/12/24/alalam_635234679916370172_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"Bomb blast hits Egypt's Nile Delta, 14 dead"} ,{"id":"1553509","sort":"3155479","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2014/01/10/alalam_635249817529430753_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"At least three killed in fresh clashes across Egypt"} ,{"id":"1556271","sort":"3155480","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2014/01/18/alalam_635256382320452287_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"Militants blow up gas pipeline in Egypt's Sinai"} ,{"id":"1557589","sort":"3155481","contenttypeid":"21","pic":"/2014/01/21/alalam_635259282797637688_25f_4x3.jpg","title":"Morsi accused of helping terror attacks in Egypt"} ]"