Militants attacked the Sinai peninsula, killing six people and wounding 10 others, in the worst violence since the Egyptian army’s ouster of president Mohammad Mursi.

Militants attacked the Sinai peninsula, killing six people and wounding 10 others, in the worst violence since the Egyptian army’s ouster of president Mohammad Mursi.

Medical sources said on Monday that two civilians, two army officers and two policemen were killed in at least 10 attacks in the province's main northern cities of Rafah and El-Arish overnight against police stations and security and army checkpoints.

The lawless North Sinai region is a base for extremist militants who in the last two years have stepped up their attacks on security forces, exploiting a vacuum following the 2011 uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak.

The violence spiked after the army's overthrow of elected Islamist president Mohamed Mursi on July 3. Militants have since attacked several security checkpoints and other targets almost daily, killing at least 20 people.