Militants shoot faithful fleeing bomb blasts at Egypt mosque

El Arish (Egypt) - The militants opened fire from four off-road vehicles on worshippers inside the mosque during the sermon

Militants attacked a crowded mosque during Friday prayers in the Sinai Peninsula, setting off explosives, spraying worshippers with gunfire and killing at least 235 people in the deadliest ever attack on Egyptian civilians by extremists.
The attack targeted a mosque frequented by Sufis in the north Sinai town of Bir Al Abd.
The militants opened fire from four off-road vehicles on worshippers inside the mosque during the sermon, blocking off escape routes from the area by blowing up cars and leaving the burning wrecks blocking the roads, three police officers on the scene said.
Victims including 130 wounded were rushed to local hospitals, they added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
No one claimed responsibility immediately following the attack, but Daesh has targeted Sufis several times in the area in the past, notably beheading a leading Sufi religious figure, the blind sheikh Suleiman Abu Heraz, last year and posting photos of the killing online.
Images circulating on social media showed dozens of bloodied bodies wrapped up in sheets laid across the mosque floor, while others revealed dozens of relatives queuing up outside the hospital as ambulances raced back and forth.
Resident Ashraf El Hefny said many of the victims were workers at a nearby salt firm who had come for Friday prayers at the mosque, which had contained some 300 worshipers.
"Local people brought the wounded to hospital on their own cars and trucks," he said by telephone.
Egypt's state news agency reported the casualty toll, citing "official sources", revising it upward several times following the officials' initial reports.
Mena reported that Egypt's presidency declared a three-day mourning period, as President Abdel Fattah El Sisi convened a high-level meeting of security officials.
Cairo's international airport boosted security following the attack, with more troopers and forces seen patrolling passenger halls, conducting searches and manning checkpoints at airport approaches.