The Egyptian military has killed more than 50 Islamic terrorists during operations on the Sinai Peninsula over the weekend.
These latest operations are part of a broader push by the Egyptian government, which began in February to rid the Sinai of Islamic extremists. According to Reuters, 52 jihadis were killed in recent days, and another 49 were arrested by the Egyptian military and security personnel.
“Over the last few days, the operations have led to … the elimination of 52 extremely dangerous … individuals,” Egyptian military officials said in a statement according to Al Jazeera.
In addition to the fighting on the ground, the Egyptian Air Force also destroyed some 32 vehicles belonging to the jihadi groups, according to the Egyptian military’s website.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ordered the raids as part of his crackdown against Islamic extremists in Egypt. Sisi has targeted jihadi and takfiri groups since he took office in 2013 as the result of a military coup which removed then-president Mohamed Morsi.
The current operation on the Sinai Peninsula is in response to a 2017 terrorist attack against a mosque, which resulted in the death of hundreds of Muslims.
In total, 313 Islamic terrorists have been killed in the Sinai since February of this year according to Reuters. The Egyptian military has also taken casualties, with 35 soldiers reported killed since the fighting began.