Almost 1,000 killed or injured in terror attacks in Egypt in 2015

Almost 1,000 people were killed or injured in terror attacks in Egypt in 2015, with 400 attempted or successful attacks recorded in the country.

A report from The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information showed the highest number of attacks took place in the North Sinai region of the country, where 75 attacks took place and explosive devices were dismantled on 25 occasions.

It is also the region where a Russian plane was brought down in October 2015 en route from Sharm el Sheikh to St Petersburg, killing all 224 people on board, although these figures are not included in the report.

However, there is still some debate as to whether the plane was downed by insurgents – with many claiming the location where the plane fell, above a well-known Islamic State support area, makes it likely it was a terror attack, while others deny this is a possibility.

One Step Back, Two Steps Further Back; The Democratic Path in Egypt 2015 also showed a high number of incidences in Cairo – 44 in total, with 29 implemented operations and 15 occasions where explosive devices were dismantled.

In total, the report showed that 976 people were killed or injured in terror attacks in Egypt in 2015, the majority of them (434) security forces, following by 298 perpetrators of the attacks and 244 civilians.

Of the 434 security forces, 315 were injured and 119 killed, while 198 civilians were injured and 46 killed.

By far the group suffering the largest loss of life was the perpetrators of the terror attacks, 284 of whom were killed and just 14 injured, likely due to the nature of many of the attacks.

It is a dramatic leap from the number of attacks and attempted attacks in 2014, which saw just 87 implemented attacks, the report said.

Tourists are now being advised against travel to a number of areas in Egypt, with the UK Foreign Office advising against all travel to North Sinai, all but essential travel to South Sinai and urging extreme caution in all border areas of the Western Desert.

Although the government is not warning against travel to Sharm El Sheikh, flights there from the UK remain suspended following the downing of the Russian plane over Sinai in October.