CAIRO, Dec. 23 (CGTN) -- Egyptian police killed 14 terrorists during a shootout in Arish city in North Sinai province, the Egyptian Interior Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

The police killed eight of them during the exchange of gunfire lasting for an unspecified number of hours, according to the statement. A further six ran away, but officers pursued and killed them.

The statement said the militants were killed during a raid on a terrorist hotbed planning attacks in Arish.

"Many weapons, ammunition and explosive devices were found in their possession," it said.

Egypt has been experiencing terrorist activities that have killed hundreds of policemen, soldiers and civilians following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 and a later security crackdown on his supporters.

Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood group is currently blacklisted in Egypt as a terrorist organization.

Most of the terror attacks in Egypt in the past few years have been claimed by a Sinai-based group loyal to ISIS.