Egypt executes top Islamist militant Adel Habara

Cairo: A prominent Islamist militant, who had been convicted of murdering dozens of Egypt's security personnel, was executed on Thursday, state-run Ahram Online website reported.

Adel Habara, a leader of a Sinai-based militant group loyal to the Islamic State, was handed a second final death sentence on Monday for killing a police detective in Sharqiya governorate in 2012, Xinhua news agency reported.

The first final death sentence was meted out on December 10, convicting the militant leader of killing 25 soldiers in North Sinai governorate in August 2013.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ratified Habara's death warrant on Wednesday. Habara was arrested in September 2013 and first stood trial in November 2015.

Egypt has been facing a rising wave of terror attacks since former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi was overthrown by the military in July 2013.