Seven civilians, including two children, were killed when a car bomb exploded near a military checkpoint in North Sinai, the Egyptian army said Monday. (File Photo: AFP)
Seven civilians were killed when a vehicle laden with explosives detonated near an army checkpoint in Egypt’s North Sinai after it was run over by an army tank aiming to stop the attack.
Video footage posted by the Egyptian army showed a 4x4 car suspiciously stop near an army check point. An Egyptian soldier who noted the car’s presence drove his army tank over the vehicle to foil the imminent attack.
The laden vehicle later exploded near the army base killing seven victims including three men, two women and two children, who “happened to be in the area in front of the ambush during the blast,” the statement added, without saying when the incident happened.
Civilian cars and commercial trucks were lined up to pass the checkpoint at the time of the foiled attack.
“The explosion was large, carrying about 100 kilograms of high explosives,” an army spokesman said in the statement.
The aborted attack could have killed nearly 50-60 soldiers and civilians, the statement added.
