Egypt army makes gains against Islamic State in western Sinai
Egyptian Army troops and tribal fighters are working to liberate the northwestern Sinai village of Gilbana from IS control as the terrorist group tries to move its command center there.
CAIRO — Fierce battles continue to rage between Egyptian army troops — aided by dozens of tribal fighters — and Islamic State-affiliated Wilayat Sinai in the Sinai Peninsula for control over a village close to the Suez Canal.
The battles started Aug. 10, soon after the IS militants overran Gilbana, a village close to the northwestern Sinai city of Bir al-Abd, which is part of the Suez Canal province of Ismailia.
They seized several vehicles, including a food truck that was on its way to the village, planted explosives along roads leading to the village and injured local residents, most of them farmers away from their fields.
Wilayat Sinai has been intensifying its operations, especially the planting of explosives, in different parts of Sinai for several weeks now.
