2 militants killed in shootout in Egypt

The Egyptian police killed two militants on Saturday in a shootout in the Delta city of Gharbiya northwest of the capital, the interior ministry said in a statement.

The two wanted militants were senior leaders of Islamist militant group Hasm Movement, the statement said.

The national security sector was tipped off that they had been hiding in Gharbiya, it added.

"A large amount of weapons and ammunition were seized," the statement noted.

Egypt has been battling waves of terrorist attacks centered in North Sinai since the army-led ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 in response to nation-wide protests against his rule.

However, some of the attacks have extended to Cairo and other cities.

Most of the terrorist attacks have been claimed by a Sinai-based group loyal to the Islamic State group. Endit