Shooting and bomb attack at al-Rawdah mosque in Bir al-Abd said to target worshipers at Friday prayers
By TOI STAFF
As many as 55 people are believed dead in a terror attack that targeted a mosque in northern Sinai, Egyptian media report.
Egyptian security officials say the attack left dozens of casualties, with one figure reaching as high as 75.
The attack is believed to be the work of jihadist cells operating in the Sinai. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi is convening a meeting with his security cabinet to discuss the attack.
Police officials told AP that extremists attacked the al-Rawdah mosque in the town of Bir al-Abd, 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the northern Sinai provincial capital of el-Arish.
According to initial reports, men in four off-road vehicles opened fire on worshipers at the mosque during the sermon at Friday prayers.
Ministry of Health spokesman Khaled Mujahid also said the militants set off a bomb during the attack, and that 75 casualties had been transferred to hospital. His comments were published on the website of state-run newspaper al-Ahram.
The hospital in El-Arish was put on emergency footing, officials said.
Baruch Goldstein redivivus…A pity he didn’t think of bombs as well. No reason for a Jew to be less thorough than an Arab.