The Egyptian army said two soldiers were killed in the Sinai Peninsula on Friday while they carried out a raid that also left three Al-Qaida-linked militants dead. The army had launched the morning operation after receiving information that a wanted militant was hiding out in an area west of Rafah, in North Sinai. The two soldiers, both conscripts, died when a gunbattle broke out after the troops came under fire, the army said in a statement. It said the operation was continuing and armed helicopters had been deployed. Security sources said the militants involved in the gunbattle were members of Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, which means "Supporters of Jerusalem". The group claimed responsibility for a September suicide bomb attack in Cairo on the interior minister. He survived unscathed.
