UN chief condemns terrorist attacks in Egypt's North Sinai
Xinhua, January 31, 2015 Adjust font size:
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Friday condemned the deadly terrorist attacks in Egypt's North Sinai province, which killed dozens of people.
"He conveys his condolences to the families of the victims and expresses his solidarity with the people of Egypt," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told a daily briefing.
On Thursday evening, militants fired a barrage of rockets and set off car bombs in security premises in Arish, the capital city of North Sinai province, killing at least 33 people and injuring dozens of others. The attacks extended to two big security checkpoints in nearby Rafah city.
Egypt has recently extended a curfew in many parts of North Sinai for another three months due to the unstable security conditions in the area amid recurrent terrorist attacks on security staff and facilities.
Anti-security attacks have gripped Sinai and other parts across the country since the ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi by the military in July 2013 and the following crackdown on his supporters.
Most of the attacks were claimed by Sinai-based al-Qaeda- inspired Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis group, which has recently changed its name to "Sinai State" after pledging loyalty to Islamic State, a radical Islamist group that has seized large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria. Endite