Blast kills 2 policemen

Photo: The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Egyptian security forces and civilians gather near the scene after a roadside bomb went off on a busy street in downtown near the foreign ministry, in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2014. (AP Photo/Aly Hazzaa, El Shorouk) 

A roadside bomb went off on Sunday on a busy downtown Cairo street near the Nile-side Egyptian Foreign Ministry, killing two senior policemen, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

In a separate incident, a military helicopter on a training mission crashed in an oasis province some 100 kilometres (65 miles) southwest of Cairo, killing six people, according to state television and chief military spokesman Brig. Gen. Mohammed Samir.

The crash in Fayoum was caused by a technical malfunction and Defence Minister Gen. Sedki Sobhi ordered an investigation into the incident, they said.

The 10:45 a.m. blast in Cairo targeted a police checkpoint near the back gate of the 34-story ministry building. Several people were wounded, said the ministry. It identified the two officers as Lt. Cols. Khaled Saafan and Mohammed Abu Sreeah. It said several other policemen were wounded by the blast, including a police major general and another lieutenant colonel.

Security officials said seven people were injured in the blast and that security forces evacuated four nearby schools as a precaution while bomb squad teams combed the area searching for more explosives.

At the Foreign Ministry, security was immediately beefed up after the blast, with security men thoroughly checking cars and bags. Security was also stepped up at the nearby building housing state television and radio.

The security officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Sunday's blast coincided with the reopening of schools after the summer break, an occasion that routinely sees massive traffic congestion throughout the city of some 18 million people.