A drive-by shooting killed four Egyptian police near an historic site on the outskirts of Cairo on Saturday and a military helicopter crashed due to a “sudden technical failure” northeast of the capital, officials said.
Masked gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a security checkpoint near Saqqara, said the police. The tourist site is home to the 4,600-year-old Step Pyramid. No one has claimed responsibility.
The helicopter was on a reconnaissance mission northeast of Cairo in the Ismailia province, the military said in a statement. It said crew members were injured, without specifying the number hurt or the severity.
Egypt has been battling a growing insurgency in the northern Sinai Peninsula led by a local Islamic State affiliate, which has mainly targeted soldiers and police there, but has also claimed attacks elsewhere in Egypt.
The militant group claimed responsibility for the crash of a Russian passenger plane in Sinai last month, saying it smuggled a bomb on board the airliner. Russia said the plane was downed by a bomb and suspended flights to Egypt. Egypt has not commented on the cause of the crash, saying an investigation is still underway.
