Egyptian soldier killed by sniper in Sinai

[September 28, 2013]  EL-ARISH, Egypt (AP) -- Egyptian security officials say a sniper has killed a soldier standing guard on a rooftop in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where the government faces an insurgency by Islamic hard-liners.

The officials said the soldier, posted on a government building, was shot by an unknown gunman from a nearby building in the town of Sheikh Zuweyid. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.

Army and police forces have stepped up their campaign against militants in the restive region that borders the Gaza Strip and Israel. Attacks against security forces surged in Sinai after the military removed President Mohammed Morsi from office on July 3 following mass protests. Gunmen shot and killed a police officer Friday in el-Arish, capital of northern Sinai.

[Associated Press; By ASHRAF SWEILAM]

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