A bomb exploded in a Cairo metro carriage on Thursday, wounding at least 16 people, state-run MENA reported.

The Interior Ministry was quoted as saying that the blast occurred at Helmiet Al-Zeitoun metro station in the northern part of Cairo. A device planted on a luggage rack exploded suddenly, and most of the injuries are minors.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosion.

In late October, a blast targeted a big military checkpoint in nearby Sheikh Zuweid city, leaving some 30 soldiers killed and tens of others injured. Egypt announced a three-month curfew and a state of emergency in some parts of North Sinai in response to the attack.

Egypt has been facing a rising wave of terrorism since the military ousted former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013. The following crackdown Morsi his supporters has left about 1,000 people killed and thousands more arrested. Anti-government attacks have since extended from the Sinai Peninsula to the capital Cairo and other provinces across the country.

The al-Qaida-inspired Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis in Sinai and its fellow Ajnad Misr groups have claimed responsibility for most of the attacks. The group purportedly posted an audio statement online Monday, claiming that it has pledged allegiance to Islamic State militant group.

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)