The Egyptian Army is bulldozing homes and olive groves to build a buffer zone around the airport in its troubled North Sinai province, AP said. In December, Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) militants targeted the defense and interior ministers in the area. Thousands will be displaced during the operation, according to local residents. They will be removed from at least a dozen hamlets around el-Arish airport to nearby cities, and the government has promised compensation. El-Arish is the main airport in the region. It has been closed to the public for more than three years, but is used when high-ranking officials travel to North Sinai. The long-term insurgency shows no sign of abating, despite years of fighting.