EL-ARISH, Egypt (Ma'an) -- Egyptian police seized a truck carrying heavy weaponry in the city of Suez on Monday, an Egyptian official said.

A police commander in North Sinai told Ma'an that the truck was en-route to the peninsula to deliver grad missiles and other high grade weapons.

Three suspects were detained for questioning and the weapons seized by Egyptian authorities.

Hardline Islamist militant groups have expanded into a vacuum left by the collapse of state control in North Sinai during the uprising that overthrew Mubarak in February, 2011.

The state launched a concerted effort to reestablish control following an Aug. 5 attack in which 16 border guards were killed. But a Nov. 3 gun attack in which three policemen died underlined the challenge still facing the authorities.