Al Arish: Egyptian security officials say suspected militants have ambushed police in the northern Sinai Peninsula, killing three.

The gunmen pulled in front of a police vehicle in an unmarked truck in the area's main city of Al Arish, before standing up on the truck bed and opening fire, the officials say.

Intelligence officials who declined to be named in line with regulations say the suspects then sped off.

The head of security in northern Sinai, Ahmad Bakr, confirmed that three policemen were killed in the attack on Saturday.

Egyptian security forces have come under attack numerous times by militants in northern Sinai who have exploited the security void in the desert peninsula that borders the Gaza Strip and Israel.