CAIRO, Jan. 23 (Aswat Masriya) – Five Egyptian soldiers were killed late Sunday in a militant attack in North Sinai, Reuters reported, citing security sources.

The gunmen reportedly stopped a vehicle coming from Ismailia governorate, situated on the west bank of the Suez Canal, and opened fire on the soldiers, leaving them dead. They didn't attack the driver and the rest of the passengers.  

Reuters reported that the attackers were believed to be linked to the Islamic State (IS) group.

Egypt's armed forces spokesman mourned the soldiers in a post on his official Facebook page, saying they were killed at the hands of "treacherous takfiri elements in Sinai", without mentioning any further details about the attack.

Following the ouster of former president Mohamed Mursi, who hailed from the Muslim Brotherhood, militancy inside Egypt has seen a significant rise. North Sinai has been at the epicenter of this insurgency, with a number of attacks targeting security personnel, police officers, as well as high-ranking judges.