Islamic State claims attack on cops outside Cairo

In a statement circulated on social media, IS claims an attack near Cairo earlier today that killed eight Egyptian police.

It says “a squad of the soldiers of the caliphate” opened fire on the police van and then made off with their weapons.

The attack was carried out in retaliation for “women imprisoned” in Egyptian jails, it says.

Jihadists have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers in attacks, mostly in the Sinai Peninsula and also in and around Cairo, since the military toppled Islamist president Mohammed Morsi in 2013.

Militants had carried out a previous attack in Helwan, killing a policeman standing guard outside a museum in June 2015.

IS jihadis, who are based in the sparsely populated Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip, have repeatedly tried to make inroads into the capital, where police have had more success in quelling them than in Sinai.

They have claimed several attacks in Cairo, including the bombing of the Italian consulate in July 2015.

— AFP