The Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) denied that it was attacked on Monday, denying the official narrative provided by Egyptian state media that a MFO worker was killed while another two were injured as an unknown shell targeted their private car in Sheikh Zuweid.
The Army said Tuesday that the source of the shelling is unknown.
This is not the first case of a civilian dying amidst the fighting between the armed forces and the Sinai-based militant group “State of Sinai”. Civilians have also been targeted by North Sinai militants for allegedly “collaborating with the army”.
On Tuesday, the parliament discussed the extension of the curfew in North Sinai, after President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi issued a declaration on 4 May to extend the state of emergency for an additional three months.
North Sinai has been under a state of emergency since the term of interim President Adly Mansour, who came into office following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi. The state of emergency was last extended in January 2016.
Since August 2013, clashes between the Armed Forces and Islamic State-affiliated militants in North Sinai have increased.
On their side, the armed forces are currently evacuating a 5km area from the border crossing linking Egypt with the Gaza Strip to create a buffer zone. The buffer zone is to destroy all smuggling tunnels leading in and out of Sinai to avoid the “infiltration of terrorists and weapons”.
The MFO forces were targeted before as in September 2015 a bomb targeted an MFO vehicle, leading to the injury of six troops including four Americans and two Fijians.
