Egypt: Bomb blasts in Cairo kill one person and injure five others

One person was killed and five others injured, including policemen, when five bombs exploded in Cairo on 26 February.

A bomb exploded outside a restaurant in the residential district of Imbaba, killing one and wounding two, the interior ministry said in a statement.

Three policemen were wounded when another device went off near a police station in the district of Alwaraq near Imbaba, security sources said.

In Alwaraq, gas station worker Alaa Aly Mohamed came close to being killed by one of the bombs.

"I was cleaning when I found a red sports bag and another black one. I tried prodding them with a wiper and found a timer ... so I backed away and told others," he said.

Three other bombs exploded in the nearby, mainly middle-class district of Mohandeseen, according to the interior ministry. They caused limited damage to mobile phone shops, but no injuries.

Most of deadliest bomb attacks in Egypt have hit the Sinai Peninsula - a remote but strategic region bordering Gaza, Israel and the Suez Canal. However, smaller blasts have become increasingly common in Cairo and other cities.

Last month, the Egyptian affiliate of Islamic State claimed responsibility for coordinated attacks that killed at least 30 security personnel in Sinai.