Two soldiers of the Central Security Forces were wounded by a shotgun in Northern Sinai while chasing smugglers across the Egyptian borders, the state news service MENA reported Monday.
The soldiers, Amr Ahmed Mohsen and Atwa Ahmed Atwa, were assigned to observe international mark 11. They allegedly came across Bedouins engaging in smuggling across the border.
The smugglers shot them when they were caught.
Mohsen and Atwa were injured in the left foot and the left elbow, respectively. They were immediately taken to the hospital.
Border security incidents have increased over the past year, with an increase in lawlessness in the peninsula since the overthrow of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011.
Recently, Police forces have expanded their efforts to catch the attackers and the weapons used.
On Sunday, the pipeline transporting Egyptian natural gas to Israel was bombed for the 15th time since the January uprising last year.
Also on Sunday, assailants on the Egyptian side of the border with Israel opened fire at a bus carrying Israeli soldiers, causing no casualties but damaging the vehicle, a military spokeswoman said.
Edited translation from MENA
