At least nine dead in suicide bombing in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula

A suicide bomber drove a bin lorry packed with explosives into a security checkpoint outside a police building in northern Sinai, killing at least nine and wounding 10 people, Egyptian officials said.

The attack in the city of el-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula on Monday was followed by smaller explosions as militants wearing black masks fired rocket-propelled grenades at the troops around the checkpoint, according to security and medical officials.

The blast destroyed three floors of the building. At least two bodies have been retrieved from the rubble and the 10 wounded have been taken to hospital.

At the checkpoint, two officers survived unharmed, the officials said. There were unconfirmed reports that a number of security personnel were seized and abducted by the gunmen.

The bin lorry had been stolen days earlier from the municipality of el-Arish, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

An Islamic State affiliate in Egypt has carried out scores of attacks against security forces in the volatile northern Sinai and elsewhere in the country.

AP