Egyptian soldiers kill leader of Sinai jihadist group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis

EL-ARISH - Egyptian soldiers have killed a top militant in the Sinai Peninsula amid clashes on Thursday, senior military officials said.

Mohammed Abu Sheeta, a leader of the al-Qaeda-inspired group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, was killed in the town of Rafah, which borders the Gaza Strip and Israel.

Sheeta had led the abduction of Egyptian soldiers to press the government to release his detained brother, the officials said.

The officials also said soldiers discovered an underground field hospital and a store packed with explosives.