Egyptian tank runs over explosive-laden vehicle

An Egyptian army tank runs over an explosive laden vehicle in a move which thwarted an attack which could have claimed the lives of at-least 50 civilians and soldiers in a checkpoint in the restive Sinai Peninsula.

Despite the tank’s heroic measures, seven civilians were killed during the incident which occurred at a military checkpoint located to the south of al-Arish in North Sinai on Monday.

“When an Egyptian soldier used a tank to stop the vehicle three men, two women and two children happened to be in the area in front of the ambush during the blast,” said a statement released by the army.

According to the Egyptian military, the 4×4 vehicle was carrying five militants and around 100 kilograms of explosives when the tank successfully halted its progress.

The Sinai Peninsula has been under a state of emergency since October 2014, after a deadly terrorist attack left 33 Egyptian soldiers dead.

Over the past years, militants have been carrying out anti-government activities and fatal attacks, taking advantage of the turmoil caused in Egypt after the democratically-elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was ousted in a military-led coup in July 2013.

The Velayat Sinai militant group, which is an affiliate of Daesh, has claimed responsibility for most of the assaults, mainly targeting the army and police.