The U.S. Emphasizes Cooperation with Egypt in the Fight Against Terrorism

Following an attack by armed militants on an Egyptian army checkpoint in northern Sinai that left at least 12 dead, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department emphasized cooperation with Egypt to combat terrorism. According to Reuters, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack on the Egyptian army checkpoint in Sinai on Friday. John Kirby, the U.S. State Department spokesperson, stated that the United States condemns the ISIS attack on the checkpoint that resulted in the deaths of several Egyptian soldiers. In his statement, Kirby expressed condolences to the families of the victims of the attack. The U.S. State Department spokesperson reiterated: 'We declare our solidarity with the people of Egypt in confronting the tide of violent extremism. The United States strongly supports Egypt's security. We will continue to work together to eliminate this threat.' According to Reuters, Islamist militants have been carrying out armed actions against the Egyptian government since 2013 when General Sisi managed to oust then-President Mohamed Morsi and took control of the situation. The report adds that these Islamist militants pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in 2014 and have killed hundreds of Egyptian soldiers and police during this period. Meanwhile, the Egyptian army announced on Friday regarding the recent attack: 'On Thursday night, a group of armed terrorist elements attacked a checkpoint in northern Sinai with a bomb-laden vehicle.' The Egyptian army reported the casualties from this attack as eight soldiers and three attackers. However, according to hospital sources in Egypt, the number of soldiers killed in the Thursday night attack has risen to 12.