Egypt's Turmoil Deepens ~> Militants Kill 25 Egyptian Policemen Execution-Style

CAIRO (AP)

Suspected militants on Monday ambushed two mini-buses carrying off-duty policemen in Egypt's northern Sinai Peninsula, killing 25 of them execution-style and wounding two, security officials said.

The killings, which took place near the border town of Rafah, compound Egypt's woes a day after police fired tear gas to free a prison guard from rioting detainees, killing at least 36. The deaths of the 36 detainees and the 25 policemen take to nearly 1,000 the number of people killed in Egypt since Wednesday's simultaneous assaults on two sit-in protest camps by supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.

In Monday's attack in Sinai, the militants forced the two vehicles to stop, ordered the policemen out and forced them to lie on the ground before they shot them to death, the officials said. The policemen were in civilian clothes, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. More

Egyptian authorities say 36 people were killed in a prison truck escape attempt on Sunday. Hundreds have died in clashes between the Egyptian military and Muslim Brotherhood supporters in the past few days. (Aug. 19)