Egypt army says 46 fighters and three soldiers killed in Sinai
About 100 suspects were arrested and more than 30 cars and scooters were confiscated or destroyed, military says.
The Egyptian military says three troops and dozens of people suspected of belonging to armed groups have been killed in recent days during shootouts in the Sinai Peninsula.
In a video recording on Monday, the armed forces said a campaign “over the last period” had resulted in “the elimination of 46 very dangerous members of terrorist elements during exchanges of fire in north and central Sinai“.
The statement did not specify the dates or locations of the security operations.
About 100 suspects were arrested and more than 30 cars and scooters confiscated or destroyed, it said, adding that the forces destroyed 10 tunnels on the border with the besieged Gaza Strip.
The military also said Egyptian forces had destroyed 15 hideouts and dismantled 204 explosive devices during the operations. The statement did not give the identity or affiliation of the suspects it faced in Sinai, the Western Desert and southern Egypt.
The armed forces said several hundred fighters have been killed since it launched a major campaign in February 2018 aimed at vanquishing the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and related groups in Sinai.
Human rights organisations have accused Egypt of carrying out extrajudicial executions and of trying civilians in military courts as part of the crackdown.