Six police officers killed in Cairo blast

CAIRO — An Egyptian Islamic extremist group claimed responsibility Friday for an explosion in Cairo that killed six police officers and wounded three more.

The explosion targeted security forces on Al Haram Street, known as “Pyramids road,” the main route from downtown to the Giza pyramids, according to the state-run MENA news agency.

The Hasm Movement posted a statement online saying it carried out the attack, in which four civilians also were injured. The state news agency did not say what caused the explosion.

“And we stress to the militias of the military occupation that martyrs’ blood will never go to waste, for they are the fuel to our revolution and the torches that illuminate our path of resistance and a curse that hunts their killers, and by God, we shall have revenge,” the statement said. “By God, we shall have revenge — if after time — for there will be no safety or security for you as long as we carry our weapons in jihad for God, either victors or martyrs.”

News channel AlJazeera, citing unnamed security sources, reported that the blast was caused by a bomb placed in a trash can near a police checkpoint.

The Hasm Movement, which has links to the nowbanned Muslim Brotherhood, has claimed responsibility for several attacks around Cairo in recent months, including the assassination of a police officer and the attempted killing of a senior prosecutor.

On Tuesday, security forces killed three gunmen in what authorities said was a raid on a hideout in southern Egypt used by an armed wing of the Muslim Brotherhood.

A military coup ousted Muslim Brotherhood leader and President Mohamed Morsi three years ago. Since then, hundreds of soldiers and police have been killed in attacks by several armed groups across Egypt, mainly to the north in the Sinai Peninsula, and tourism has suffered.