CAIRO, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- At least 15 terrorists were killed in a shootout with the Egyptian police in Arish city of North Sinai province in northeastern Egypt, Egyptian Interior Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

A prior investigation revealed that a group of terrorists took a farm in Arish as a hideout to plot and carry out their anti-state operations, and the police raided the farm and dealt with the terrorists who started shooting.

"The clashes led to the killing of 15 terrorists, while nine machine guns, three shotguns, two improvised explosive devices and an explosive belt were in their possession," the statement said.

The confrontation came a couple of days after the Egyptian army announced killing in cooperation with the police 118 terrorists in recent days in Sinai. Meanwhile, a military officer and nine soldiers were either killed or injured.

Egypt has been fighting a wave of terror activities that have killed hundreds of policemen, soldiers and civilians since the military ousted former President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 in response to mass protests against his one-year rule and his currently outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group.

The Egyptian leadership considers Muslim Brotherhood "the source of all terrorism," while the group repeatedly claims adherence to peacefulness.

A Sinai-based terrorist group loyal to the Islamic State regional group claimed responsibility for most of the terror attacks in Egypt over the past few years.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian forces have killed hundreds of terrorists and arrested thousands of suspects during the country's anti-terror war declared by President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, the army chief then, following Morsi's ouster. Enditem

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