As police chased a man suspected to have targeted security staff near a mosque in Cairo, it ended with an explosion and two policemen killed. “As security surrounded the man and was set to arrest and control him, an explosive device in his possession went off,” Egypt’s interior ministry said.
The explosion killed the bomber and injured three other policemen. The bomber was suspected of planting explosives which were later defused near a security outpost at a mosque in Giza on Friday. The ministry said he was being chased in “efforts to search for the perpetrator”
The explosion on Monday also took place near a mosque (Al Azhar mosque) and damaged nearby shops. “My shop’s front and windows were destroyed,” said Kareem Sayed Awad, a barbershop owner. “Not only that, but people have died. This is a tourist area and such incidents affect it.”
Following the 2011 uprising, tourism in Egypt has struggled to cope amidst the continued domestic instability. Authorities have been trying to get tourists back with archeological sites and new discoveries, also boosting security at archeological sites and airports. Their efforts are beginning to show yield as tourist numbers reached 8.3 million, from 5.3 million in 2016, but it is yet to reach pre-uprising numbers (over 14 million in 2010).
Islamic insurgency has been an uphill battle for Egypt which worsened after the 2013 ousting of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013. The attacks have transpired mainly concentrated in the northern Sinai Peninsula but also see instances on the mainland.