Islamic State Affiliate Claims Rocket Attack on Egypt Navy Vessel – PHOTOS - Maritime and Salvage Wolrd News

By Eric Knecht and Ali Abdelaty

CAIRO, July 16 (Reuters) – Egypt’s Islamic State affiliate stated on Thursday it fired a rocket at an Egyptian naval vessel within the Mediterranean Sea close to the coast of Israel and the Gaza Strip.

The militant group Sinai Province has targeted primarily on attacking Egyptian troopers and police within the Sinai peninsula, killing tons of for the reason that military toppled Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in 2013 after mass protests towards his rule.

Photographs distributed on-line by the group appeared to point out a rocket heading in the direction of a ship and setting it ablaze on impression. Reuters couldn’t confirm the militants’ model of occasions.

Sinai Islamic State affiliate releases photographs of what it says is a rocket assault on an Egyptian navy ship close to Rafah. pic.twitter.com/1AjeIqq6rZ
— Erin Cunningham (@erinmcunningham) July 16, 2015

The Egyptian army stated in an announcement {that a} coastguard launch had exchanged photographs with “terrorist elements”, inflicting the vessel to catch fireplace. It stated there was no lack of life.

Such incidents at sea are uncommon, although Egypt is battling an more and more brazen Islamist insurgency within the Sinai that lies between Israel, the Gaza Strip and the Suez Canal.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has stated militancy poses an existential risk to Egypt, probably the most populous Arab nation.

As military chief, Sisi overthrew Mursi after which launched a crackdown on Islamists, which has weakened his foes within the mainstream Muslim Brotherhood motion however didn’t neutralise Sinai-based militants.

Sinai Province, probably the most deadly militant group in Egypt, final yr pledged loyalty to Islamic State, which controls giant tracts of territory in Syria and Iraq and has a presence in Egypt’s neighbour Libya.

It has not too long ago carried out excessive profile assaults, which prompted the drafting of a sweeping counter-terrorism legislation.

On July 1, 100 militants and at the least 17 members of the safety forces had been killed in a single day of clashes and assaults claimed by Sinai Province, authorities stated.

The automobile bomb assassination of Egypt’s prime prosecutor in Cairo final month has additionally raised issues that the insurgency is spreading.

A Reuters witness in Gaza noticed a plume of darkish gray smoke rising from a ship off the coast. Other witnesses within the Palestinian enclave stated they heard explosions and gunfire.

Military sources stated the suspected militants had fled after firing on the vessel.

Later within the day a small bomb exploded in a residential space of the upscale Cairo neighbourhood of Heliopolis, wounding a police officer, safety sources stated.

State tv, in the meantime, introduced the resignation of the Cairo police chief. It didn’t elaborate. (Reporting by Ali Abdelaty; Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi and Saleh Salem in Gaza and Ori Lewis in Jerusalem; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Michael Georgy and Ros Russell)