Qatar Condemns Deadly Bombing of Market in Egypt’s North Sinai

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Qatari government condemned on Tuesday the deadly bomb attack at a market in Egypt’s restive North Sinai province that killed four officers and three civilians.

"The State of Qatar condemned the explosion that took place near a market in the city of Sheikh Zuweid", the Foreign Ministry said. The ministry added in the statement that Doha firmly rejected "violence and terrorism, regardless of motives and reasons".

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The attack by what the Egyptian Interior Ministry said was a 15-year-old suicide bomber wounded 26 people. The Daesh terrorist group reportedly claimed responsibility for the blast.

In 2014, local terrorist group Wilayat Sinai pledged its allegiance to the Daesh terrorist group. Since then, the militants claimed responsibility for a number of deadly attacks in the region.

Comprehensive Operation – Sinai, a major anti-terrorist offensive launched by the country's armed forces and the Interior Ministry, kicked off in the north and the center of the peninsula in February 2018. Since then, hundreds of militants were killed and detained.

Cairo has been battling Islamic insurgents in the desert region for years. Police and security forces, as well as civilians, have frequently been the target of deadly attacks staged by Islamists.

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* Daesh (ISIL/ISIS/IS/Islamic State) is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia and many other countries.