Egyptian security forces killed 11 suspected extremists in the Sinai region, a security source said Monday. They were killed during the military and security forces’ ongoing Sinai 2018 operation to crackdown on terrorists in the peninsula. "Eleven terrorist elements were killed in an exchange of fire" with security forces in El-Arish, the capital of North Sinai province, the security source said. The extremists were in an abandoned petrol station preparing terrorist acts against security forces, it added. The military launched a sweeping operation in February focused on the Sinai in eastern Egypt aimed at wiping out terrorists, including from the ISIS group, who have been waging a bloody insurgency. Terrorists launched the insurgency in Egypt after the 2013 ouster of Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi. Hundreds of police and soldiers have since been killed in the extremist attacks. The military says around 300 suspected extremists and at least 35 soldiers have been killed since the launch of the operation in February.