Cairo's airport authorities have declared a state of emergency and a heightened security alert after several explosions hit Egypt on Monday.

According to Al-Ahram's Arabic website, security has been reinforced on all airport entrances and exits, in addition to the arrival and departure terminals and roads leading to the airport, in coordination between the police and the army.

Three attacks hit Egypt on Monday morning in Cairo, Ismailia and South Sinai.

Six Egyptian army personnel – one officer and five soldiers – were killed in an attack by gunmen on an army patrol near the Suez Canal city of Ismailia on Monday morning, security officials said.

Shortly afterwards in the southern Sinai town of Al-Tor, two were killed and 48 injured in a massive car bomb explosion targeting security headquarters.

Meanwhile in southern Cairo's upscale district of Maadi, armed assailants attacked with RPGs an uplink telecom facility used to air channels on Egypt's Nilesat satellite, reported pan-Arab news channel Sky News Arabia. The attack reportedly caused limited damage to some of the satellite dishes at the site. No casualties resulting from the attack have been reported so far.

An informed security source told Al-Ahram that special forces have been called to secure the checkpoints at the airport's entrances.

Police dogs trained to sniff out weapons and explosives have also been deployed, added the source.