Gunmen kill 8 officers in ambush as they spray minivan with bullets

Eight police officers have been killed by gunmen in an attack south of Cairo. The officers were travelling in a minivan in the Helwan district when they were ambushed. Four gunmen blocked their path using a pick up truck and then sprayed the vehicle with automatic rifle fire. The dead included a lieutenant and seven lower ranking officers, the Egyptian interior ministry said.

(The dead were) heroes of the police martyrs who sacrificed their lives to preserve the security of the homeland and the people

Interior minister Magdy Abdel-Ghaffar

It is not known who was responsible but Islamic State has killed hundreds of police in attacks, mostly in the Sinai peninsula. Islamic State has killed hundreds of police in attacks, mostly in the Sinai peninsula. It has claimed several attacks in Cairo, however, including an attempted assassination of the interior minister in 2013 and the bombing of the Italian consulate in July 2015.

police cairo