Egyptian soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula
Egyptian soldiers in the Sinai PeninsulaAFP photo

A suicide bomber in a car full of explosives rammed into a checkpoint in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing three soldiers and a policeman, officials said.

Al Jazeera cited the security officials as saying Thursday's attack happened outside the city of el-Arish.

They said the bomber slowly approached the checkpoint, waited for soldiers and policemen to start searching the car before he blew himself and his vehicle up. Five other people were wounded.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy declared Wednesday that the country's army would act against targets in Gaza, if necessary. Military sources pointed out that a list of targets in the Hamas-ruled area has been put together.

In recent weeks, the Egyptian military has been operating against terrorists in the northern Sinai Peninsula and has blamed Hamas for cooperating with jihadists in the terrorist ranks.

Jihadi terrorists in Sinai stepped up their attacks on Egyptian forces following the deposing of the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi from the presidency.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday in Malaysia that despite the decision by the U.S. to slash aid to Egypt, the Obama administration remains committed to restoring democracy in Egypt and will stay engaged with its interim leaders.

The State Department said Wednesday it would freeze hundreds of millions of dollars in aid for Egypt, most of it in military assistance.

Kerry said that "by no means" was the decision a withdrawal from relations.