12.53 AM Saturday, 12 October 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:58 06:12 12:08 15:27 17:59 19:13
12 October 2024

Major blast damages Cairo police HQ, kills 4

Published
By Reuters

A suspected car bomb damaged a top security compound in central Cairo on Friday, killing at least four people in one of the most high-profile attacks on the state in months, security and medical sources said.

The explosion damaged the face of the Cairo Security Directorate, which includes police and state security, and sent smoke rising over the capital, raising concerns that an Islamist insurgency is gathering pace.

The dead included three policemen. State television quoted the Cairo governor as saying 50 people were wounded.

Reuters witnesses heard gunfire immediately after the blast, which twisted the metal and shattered windows of nearby shops. Wood and metal debris was scattered hundreds of metres around.

One body covered in a blanket lay in a pool of blood near a scorched car engine.

State television quoted witnesses as saying gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on buildings after the explosion.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which came a day before the third anniversary of the uprising that toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak and raised hopes of a stable democracy in the Arab world's biggest nation.

Instead, relentless political turmoil and street violence have hit investment and tourism hard.

Islamist militants based in the Sinai have stepped up attacks on security forces since the army toppled President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood last July after mass protests against his rule.

Attacks in other parts of Egypt have been rising. The assault on police headquarters will likely encourage the state to crack down harder on the Brotherhood, which it accuses of carrying out terrorist acts. The Brotherhood says it is a peaceful movement.

The mood was tense at the site of the blast. "Traitors and dogs!" yelled onlookers, in apparent reference to the assailants.

People also chanted anti-Brotherhood slogans. "The people want the execution of the Brotherhood. Execution for Mursi," they yelled.