Egyptian forces have killed at least 5 militants belonging to an al-Qaeda-affiliated group in an area northeast of the capital, Cairo.

“Terrorists from the Ansar Beit al-Maqdis terrosit group opened fire on the country’s security forces after the troops raided a farm located in the Nile Delta province of Sharqiya”, the Egyptian Interior Ministry said in a statement issued on Sunday.

The statement further noted that the militants were hiding and preparing bombs on the farm.

"An exchange of gunfire then took place, causing the deaths of five members of the terrorist cell while a police officer was injured," the statement added.

The Egyptian police confiscated a large amount of weapons and ammunition and detonated a car bomb detected on the farm.

Egypt’s army spokesman Brigadier General Mohamed Samir also stated on Sunday that Egyptian government forces have killed 14 militants and arrested 45 others during separate operations in the volatile Sinai Peninsula of the North African country over the past three days.

A state of emergency has been declared in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula since a militant attack on an Egyptian army checkpoint killed more than 30 soldiers on October 24.

Residents living along the border between northern Sinai and the besieged Gaza Strip have been ordered to relocate. The Egyptian army is also razing over 800 houses in the area to create a wider buffer zone with Gaza.

The Egyptian military considers the Sinai Peninsula as a safe haven for gunmen, who use the region as a base for their acts of terror.

Ansar Bait al-Maqdis has claimed responsibility for most of the terrorist attacks in the region.