CAIRO (AA): Five policemen were killed in a militant attack in Egypt’s restive Sinai Peninsula late Wednesday, the country’s Interior Ministry said.

In a statement, the ministry said that unidentified gunmen had opened fire on a security checkpoint in the North Sinai city of Arish.

“Five policemen, including three officers, were killed in an exchange of fire with the attackers,” the ministry said.

According to the ministry, three police conscripts were also injured in the attack.

A Daesh-linked group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

In a statement circulated on Twitter, the Welayet Sinai” (Province of Sinai) group said its members had also seized an armored vehicle during the attack.

Since the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi in a 2013 military coup, the northern Sinai Peninsula has been the epicenter of a deadly insurgency against Egyptian security personnel.

In recent months, Welayet Sinai has claimed responsibility for a spate of deadly attacks on Egyptian security forces deployed in the volatile region.

Author Mohamed Sabry Emam Muhammed

[Map: Sinai Peninsula Egypt. University of Texas Libraries, Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection. CIA. Creative Commons]