Islamic State late Friday claimed responsibility for a car bomb attack on a military checkpoint in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula in which at least 26 soldiers were killed, including a senior officer.
The Amaaq News Agency, which is affiliated with Islamic State, said that as the army was getting ready to launch a military operation "against positions of the jihadists... one of the brothers with his boobytrapped vehicle" blew himself up among them.
The Sinai branch of Islamic State added that after the blast several jihadists "raided" the checkpoint "to kill whoever was still alive."
According to the agency, the attack killed or injured more than 60 soldiers, including a brigadier, while five Islamic State fighters were also killed.
Earlier Friday, the army said the checkpoint in northern Sinai was struck by several car bombs, leaving 26 troops dead or injured.
Twenty-one military personnel were also injured in the attack, a security source who is based in the volatile region, told dpa on condition of anonymity.
Armed Forces spokesman Tamer al-Rifai said the bombings came after troops in northern Sinai had foiled imminent "terrorist attacks" targeting several checkpoints in the same area south of the town of Rafah, bordering the Gaza Strip and Israel.
Al-Rifai added that military forces had killed more than 40 "terrorists" and destroyed six of their vehicles following the attack.
The army's official Facebook page posted images of dead bodies - alleged to be the attackers - in combat fatigues.
Largely desert, the Sinai Peninsula has seen repeated attacks by hardline jihadists, mainly targeting security forces, since the 2011 uprising that toppled long-time dictator Hosny Mubarak.
In recent months, militants have also mounted attacks elsewhere in Egypt against security forces and the country's minority Christian population.
Also on Friday, unidentified gunmen killed a police officer near Cairo, the Interior Ministry said.
The attackers, riding a motorbike, shot the officer while he was on his way to pray at a mosque in the city of Qaliubia, north of the capital, the ministry added in a statement.
No arrests were immediately reported.
