Update – Oıc, Qatar Condemn Cairo Bomb Attack

UPDATES WITH OIC CONDEMNATION, CHANGES HEADLINE



By Ahmed Yusuf and Viola Fahmy





The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and Qatar on Tuesday condemned a bomb explosion that killed two policemen in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, a day earlier.





In a statement, OIC Secretary-General Yousef al-Othaimeen underlined the pan-Muslim grouping's solidarity with Egypt in the face of terrorism.





"Such criminal acts will only increase the strength and determination of Egypt and the Egyptians to eliminate terrorist groups," al-Othaimeen said.





Qatar, for its part, expressed its strong condemnation of the bomb attack.





In a statement, the Foreign Ministry affirmed Qatar's "constant stance rejecting violence and terrorism" and offered condolences to families of the victims and the Egyptian people.





Late Monday, two police officers were killed and another two injured when a militant detonated an explosive device in Cairo's ancient Islamic district close to the Al Azhar mosque, according to the Egyptian Interior Ministry.





The attack occurred as security forces were pursuing the militant.





According to a report by local news site Egypt Today, security forces identified the attacker as Al Hasan Abdullah, 37.





The suspect was allegedly involved in an attack in Giza province last Friday in which an improvised explosive device (IED) was planted near a mosque.





The Egyptian-Qatari relations have strained since 2013, when the military deposed Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president, who was backed by Doha.





In mid-2017, Egypt joined a Saudi-led bloc in severing diplomatic and trade relations with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism, a claim vehemently denied by Qatar. -