CAIRO - Two Egyptian policemen were killed and another one was injured Sunday morning by militants in an ambush in Arish, capital of Egypt's North Sinai Governorate.

"A group of hard-line militants set an ambush for a police patrol coming from Arish," General Saleh al-Masry, chief of North Sinai security forces, told Xinhua, "As the patrol approached a tree-dense area, the group surprised it with heavy fire."

"The attackers used four-wheel-drive vehicles to escape from the scene," a security source told Xinhua.

Arish has witnessed several attacks by militants targeting the police. A policeman was murdered by militants in March 2011 at a police station in the city. Five people, including two officers, were killed and 19 others were injured in July when dozens of veiled militants assaulted a police station.