The Egyptian interior minister survived an assassination attempt on Thursday morning, when a remote-controlled bomb targeted his convoy in Cairo’s Nasr city.
The attack killed at least two people and left 10 wounded, security officials said.
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The minister, Mohammad Ibrahim, told reporters the attack marked the start of “a new wave of terrorism.”
Ibrahim said: “What happened today is not the end, but the beginning.”
The minister was among those who oversaw a violent crackdown on supporters of Mohammad Mursi, the Islamist president ousted two months ago by the army, following mass protests against his rule.
Ibrahim said this week that he had been informed of plans to kill him, and that “foreign elements” were involved. General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, head of the armed forces, supplied him with an armored car identical to the one he uses, according to the minister.
Al Arabiya’s Cairo correspondent said the explosion took place at around 10 am local time.
Early reports said it was not clear whether the explosion was caused by a suicide car bombing or an explosives-laden car detonated by remote control.
Ibrahim said the “despicable attempt” on his life had destroyed four of his bodyguards’ vehicles. He said one police officer was in critical condition, and that another officer and a small child had lost their legs.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Nasr City is a stronghold of the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamist group from which Mursi hails. It was also the site of a sit-in protest by his supporters that was stormed by police on Aug. 14, in an incident that killed hundreds.