CAIRO, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian police killed at least 11 militants on Wednesday in exchange of fire in the western desert of Egypt, the interior ministry said in a statement.
The shootout erupted while the National Security forces were combing the remote areas in the western desert in Upper Egypt, where terrorists used to take as hideouts, according to the statement.
The security forces gathered near the mountainous areas in Assiut Province, and broke into the terrorist camps when they were training to use explosive devices.
Five explosive belts, four automatic weapons, three guns and several maps were seized in the raid.
The Sinai-based terrorist activities started to gain strength after the 2013 military ouster of Egyptian former Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in response to massive protests against his one-year rule.
The raid on Wednesday is part of the anti-terror "Comprehensive Operation Sinai 2018" launched in February, in which more than 400 militants and over 30 soldiers have so far been killed.
