Iran Condemns Terrorist Attacks in Egypt’s North Sinai
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham denounced Thursday's terrorist attacks in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
Afkham on Friday slammed the deadly attacks and said the purpose behind such acts is to preoccupy Islamic and regional countries with peripheral issues and keep them away from the Muslim world’s top priority, namely supporting the Palestinian people and defending the holy Quds (Jerusalem).
She further underscored the need for cooperation and unity among regional countries in fighting extremism and terrorism.
On Thursday, suspected fighters fired a barrage of rockets and set off a car bomb in a series of attacks in Egypt's North Sinai province, killing at least 26 people, mostly soldiers, according to security officials.
Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, the Egyptian affiliate of the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, claimed responsibility for the attacks that struck the provincial capital of El-Arish, the nearby town of Sheik Zuwayid and the town of Rafah bordering the Gaza Strip.