Egyptian police said they have killed three members of the Hasm terrorist group in a shootout in a Greater Cairo suburb, a statement by the interior ministry said on Monday.

 

The ministry says the two suspects, identified as Mohamed Abdel Karim Marei and Mahmoud Barakat, as well as another unnamed member, shot at police on Sunday evening as police attempted to apprehend them in 15th of May, a suburb in Eastern Helwan.

 

The three men were wanted in a terrorism-related operation known as the “Hasm Movement Action," which was under investigation by Homeland Security.

 

According to the statement, the three suspected militants were planning to carry out an attack in the near future.

 

Hasm has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks against Egyptian security personnel in recent months, mostly targeting police checkpoints.

 

Egyptian security forces have arrested and killed dozens of suspected Hasm members in the past few months.

 

Egyptian officials have said that that the group is linked to the banned Muslim Brotherhood group.