Three policemen were reported killed of gunshot wounds and three others injured during an armed assault by unknown assailants on Saturday in Al-Arish, in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.

A medical source from Al-Arish hospital said that six policemen were admitted to the hospital at 3:00pm Saturday.

According to a security source, the assault is believed to be in response to the killing of three men by police in Sinai last week.

Sinai, on the border with Israel, has been witnessing increasing violence in the past months with recurring clashes between security forces and militants.

Bedouins living in the Sinai Peninsula have had long-standing grievances with Egyptian police and have long complained of government neglect.