Egypt dismantles 3 'militants cells'

Egypt said Monday it has dismantled three "terrorist cells" targetingsecurity forces, including one run by jihadists and another operated by studentsupporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.Militants have stepped up attacks on security forces since the army overthrew Morsiin July last year.Such attacks, which officials say have killed some 500 people, are in retaliation for adeadly police crackdown on Morsi supporters. "Police efforts resulted in the arrests of terrorist elements of these cells whichtargeted security forces," interim interior minister Mohamed Ibrahim said at a newsconference.He said one group was operated by Ajnad Misr (Soldiers of Egypt), a jihadistmovement which has claimed several attacks targeting policemen in Cairo."Police arrested three leaders and four members of this group run by Ajnad Misr inGiza province" near Cairo, Ibrahim said. "They confessed to killing members of the army and police in a series of bombings,including one that killed a police brigadier general near Cairo University" on April2, he said.That day Ajnad Misr said it was behind three bombings outside the university."The security forces also discovered and dismantled two cells that planned to attackthe army, police and public installations," Ibrahim said.One was run by a student, Abdullah Hesham, who had fought in Syria with the Ahraral-Sham rebel group battling President Bashar al-Assad's forces.Ibrahim said Hesham had received funds from Muslim Brotherhood leaders in Qatarand had also taken part in a pro-Morsi sit-in at Cairo's Nahda Square last August.Hundreds of Morsi backers were killed on August 14 when police stormed the Nahdaand Rabaa al-Adawiya squares to disperse sit-ins demanding Morsi's reinstatement.Ibrahim said police arrested Hesham and another student who planned to attacksecurity forces and state installations.He said the other group, financed by a Brotherhood leader, was also dismantled andthree of its members arrested, adding that it planned to attack the state televisionheadquarters and the Media Production City in Cairo, where many satellitetelevision channels are based.Reporters were also shown video footage of confessions by some detainees.Since Morsi's ouster, most militant attacks have been in the restive Sinai Peninsula,but jihadists have also staged spectacular assaults farther afield in the Nile Deltaand in Cairo.The deadliest attacks have been claimed by Sinai-based Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, ajihadist organisation inspired by Al-Qaeda.