2 policemen killed following gun battle with smugglers

The Egyptian interior ministry has said that 2 policemen have been killed after exchanging fire with smugglers at a border post in the volatile Northern Sinai region.

The duo were reportedly shot dead "after exchanging fire with smugglers at the 10th border post in the village of Matalah in Rafah"

According to Al Jazeera, security sources said that unidentified gunmen in a car shot dead the 2 policemen who were guarding the gate of a police camp in the city of Rafah.

Egypt extended a state of emergency imposed on Northern Sinai in October after fighters stepped up attacks in the peninsula bordering Israel, Gaza and the Suez Canal by 3 months last month.

Fighters have killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen in Sinai since mid-2013, lashing out after then-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted President Mohamed Morsi following protests.

Sisi was later elected president.