Egyptian security forces say they have shot dead 24 Daesh-affiliated militants in an attack on their hideout in central Sinai Peninsula.

Security sources added on Monday that eight more militants were arrested during the raid on the mountainous cave about 70 kilometers from the site of the recent crash of a Russian passenger plane.

The airplane crashed in the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula’s Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on October 31, leaving all the 224 people on board dead.

The Wilayat Sinai (Sinai Province) terrorists, affiliated to the Daesh Takfiri group, claimed responsibility for the crash of the Airbus A321 run by Russia’s Kogalymavia airline. Neither Russia nor Egypt has confirmed the claims.

The militant group launched its anti-government operations two years ago by taking advantage of the turmoil caused in the country after the democratically-elected president Mohammad Morsi was ousted from power by the junta in 2011.

Cairo views the volatile Sinai region as a safe haven for terrorists.

The terrorists have targeted a multitude of government officials, policemen and army troops deployed to Sinai to restore security.

Egyptian security forces have been engaged in operations to quell acts of terrorism and militancy in the Sinai Peninsula.