The Egyptian army says it has killed 725 militants in the violence-plagued governorate of North Sinai since October last year.

At least "725 militants were killed during the period of October 25, 2014 to April 30, 2015 in the restive North Sinai cities," army spokesperson Brigadier General Mohamed Samir said on Saturday.

Samir also added that 1873 suspected and 206 wanted militants were detained, while 1823 militant headquarters were ruined during the period.

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 in October 2014.

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

Since the ouster of former President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013, gunmen have launched terrorist attacks in Sinai, killing Egyptian security forces.

Velayat Sinai Takfiri militants, previously known as Ansar Bait al-Maqdis, have claimed responsibility for most of the attacks in the region. Last November, the group pledged allegiance to the ISIL terrorist group, based in Syria and Iraq.