CAIRO (AP) - Egypt says police have killed five suspected militants in a shootout north of Cairo.
The Interior Ministry says Monday the militants were killed in an exchange of fire as security forces raided their hideout in the el-Obour district. It says another five militants were arrested.
The ministry says the militants were members of Hasm, which authorities say is a breakaway faction of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
Egypt has been battling Islamic militants for years, but the insurgency gained strength after the 2013 overthrow of an elected but divisive Islamist president. The militants have mainly targeted security forces and Christians.
In February, Egypt launched a wide-scale security operation focused on the northern Sinai Peninsula, where an affiliate of the Islamic State group has carried out scores of attacks in recent years.
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