No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack Militants opened fire Saturday on the Mahajr checkpoint in the coastal city of El-Arish, officials said EL-ARISH: Egyptian security officials said at least three soldiers and three militants have been killed in a militant attack on a checkpoint in the restive northern Sinai province. They said the militants opened fire Saturday on the Mahajr checkpoint in the coastal city of El-Arish, and that the attack also wounded two soldiers. The officials said the soldiers chased the militants and killed three of them. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren"t authorized to speak to the media. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Egypt has for years been battling a long-running insurgency in North Sinai that is now led by an affiliate of Daesh. The fighting intensified in 2013 after the military overthrew an elected but divisive Islamist president.