Egyptian militants kill police chief in car bomb
PHOTO | KHALED DESOUKI An Egyptian couple walks past an army tank as security forces stand guard outside Cairo University in the capital Cairo on April 23, 2014. Student backers of Egypt's ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi have regularly protested on university campuses as a police crackdown on the ousted leader's supporters has weakened their ability to stage large street protests.
What you need to know:
- Security officers targeted in attacks since the military deposed Morsi last July
- The blast in the upscale western suburb of October Six killed Ahmed Zaki, a commander of Egypt’s central security forces who have spearheaded a crackdown on supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
CAIRO, Wednesday
A police brigadier general was killed when a bomb exploded under his car in Egypt’s capital on Wednesday, security officials said.
This is the fifth such ‘planned’ attack in Cairo within a week.
The blast in the upscale western suburb of October Six killed Ahmed Zaki, a commander of Egypt’s central security forces who have spearheaded a crackdown on supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.
Militants have carried out scores of attacks mainly targeting security forces since the military deposed Morsi last July in the wake of massive protests calling for his resignation.
The general was fatally wounded in his car as he headed for work, security officials said, adding that two conscripts were injured in the morning attack.
Video footage posted on newspaper websites showed the front of the car destroyed. It was painted light green and not the usual dark blue colour of police vehicles.
Police officers are increasingly having their cars repainted to avoid being easily identified and targeted by militants.
Mr Zaki was the third senior police officer to be killed in attacks since the start of the year, with all three fatalities in Cairo. Three other police have been killed in four more attacks over the past week.
In the Mediterranean city of Alexandria on Wednesday, a police lieutenant was killed in a gunfight with wanted “terrorist elements”, security officials said.
They said one “terrorist” was killed and another wounded, adding that police retrieved an explosives-laden belt and two home-made bombs.
Egypt’s police, feared for decades, stirred public outrage over its brutality and deadly tactics during the 2011 uprising which toppled veteran president Hosni Mubarak.
It has rehabilitated itself in the eyes of the public by pursuing supporters of the unpopular Morsi after his ouster, but it has at the same time incurred the wrath of militants.
A little-known jihadist group, Ajnad Misr (Soldiers of Egypt), has claimed several attacks on police in Cairo, and warned of further retaliation for the crackdown on Islamist backers of Morsi.
