Egyptian security officials say army helicopter gunships have fired rockets into several houses where militants were thought to have gathered in the northern Sinai peninsula, killing at least 10 people.

They said the Wednesday night raids targeted a large house in the town of Sheikh Zuwayed and several others in nearby villages.

Officials claimed the dead included senior members of the al-Qaida-inspired Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, or Champions of Jerusalem.

The group claimed responsibility for the bombing of an Egyptian tourist bus carrying 31 South Korean tourists and their guide near the border with Israel in Sinai on Monday. Four people were killed in the blast and another 13 injured.

The group has claimed a role in attacks across Egypt in recent months that have killed dozens of people, mostly police and military.

Militants have targeted security officials in northern Sinai have for years but stepped up their attacks after the Islamist president Mohammed Morsi was ousted in July.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.