US embassy cable - 05CAIRO3183

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 003183 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
NEA FOR DAS DIBBLE AND NEA/ELA 
DS FOR JOE MORTON AND FOR DSS AND DS/IP/NEA 
ALSO FOR CA AND S/CT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PTER, ASEC, CASC, KCRM, EG, Terror attacks, Explosion 
SUBJECT: EGYPT:  PROBABLE TERROR ATTACKS IN CAIRO ON APRIL 
30 
 
1.  (U) This message is senstive but unclassified, please 
handle accordingly.  Not for Internet distribution. 
 
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The Attacks 
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2.  (SBU) Two apparent terror attacks took place in Cairo on 
the afternoon of April 30.  An explosion in downtown Cairo 
killed one Egyptian and injured seven, including four 
tourists (none American) at approximately 1530.  The 
explosion occurred in Abdel Monaim Riyad Square, a major road 
intersection between the Egypt Museum and Ramses Hilton 
hotel.  The GOE announced that the injured tourists included 
an Israeli couple, an Italian woman, and a Swedish doctor. 
All have been taken to local hospitals and are, according to 
the Ministry of Health, in stable condition. 
 
3.  (U) According to a statement from the Ministry of 
Interior (MOI) read on Egypt state television at 1800, 
Egyptian security forces earlier on April 30 arrested two 
individuals in connection with the April 7 bombing at the 
Khan al Khalili bazaar, Ashraf Sa'eed Youssef and Gamal Ahmad 
Abdel Aal.  According to the statement, the police were 
pursuing a third suspect, Ihab Idris, when Idris threw 
himself from the Six October bridge (which passes over the 
square) causing a bomb he was carrying to detonate, killing 
Idris and injuring others as noted above. 
 
4.  (SBU) State Security officials have confirmed, although 
no details have been released publicly, that one hour later, 
at 1630, a shooting occurred at As Sayed Aisha Square, 
approximately one mile from Cairo's Citadel.  According to 
unconfirmed reports, two veiled Egyptian women fired on a 
tourist bus; one was killed and the second critically injured 
by return gunfire from police.  Three other Egyptians were 
injured; there are no reports of harm to tourists.  The GOE 
statement read at 1800 did not mention this latter attack. 
 
5.  (U) The Sheikh of Al Azhar, Egypt's leading cleric, 
condemned the first attack as criminal; many Egyptians 
interviewed on the streets did the same and suggested the 
attackers were attempting to destabilize the country. 
 
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American Community 
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6.  (SBU) All official Americans have been accounted for; 
many were outside Cairo for the four-day holiday weekend. 
The Charge will convene a full Emergency Action Committee at 
noon on May 1.  All official Americans have been cautioned to 
remain on heightened alert.  Embassy personnel remain in 
constant contact with Egyptian security officials and have 
requested heightened security measures at U.S. facilities. 
 
7.  (U) Post delivered the following notice to Americans 
registered at the Embassy and also posted the notice on the 
Embassy web site.  Begin text of notice: 
 
On the afternoon of Saturday, April 30th, at approximately 
3:30, an individual set off an explosion just north of the 
Egyptian Museum.  Four foreign tourists and three Egyptians 
were injured in the attack.  We understand, in a second 
incident, that a shooting attack may have targeted a tourist 
bus near the Citadel later that same afternoon.  The Embassy 
cannot confirm details on the second attack at this point. 
All reports indicate that no Americans were injured in either 
attack. 
 
U.S. citizens are advised to avoid tourist areas in Cairo 
until the Embassy is able to make an assessment of the 
security situation in Cairo.  Americans should be exceedingly 
careful and maintain a heightened awareness of their 
surroundings.  The Embassy will inform the community via 
warden message and Internet as we develop additional 
information. 
 
As the U.S. Government develops information on any potential 
security threats to U.S. citizens overseas, it shares 
credible threat information through its consular information 
program documents, available on the Internet at 
http://travel.state.gov.  For further information, U.S. 
citizens may call the Embassy's American Citizen Services 
Unit on 797-2301 during business hours, Sunday to Thursday 
from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.  For emergencies after 
business hours and on weekends, U.S. citizens can contact the 
Embassy Duty Officer via the Embassy switchboard on 797-3300. 
 The Embassy is located at 5 Latin America Street, Garden 
City, Cairo.  General information about Egypt is available at 
the Embassy's website www.usembassy.egnet.net.  The most 
recent State Department Worldwide Caution Public 
Announcement, and Middle East and North Africa Public 
Announcement contain additional security information.  These 
documents can be found at www.travel.state.gov. 
End text of notice. 
 
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Implications 
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8.  (SBU) Comment.  The MOI statement on the first attack is 
peculiar.  It strains credulity that a terrorist being 
pursued by police would manage to reach one of the major 
intersections in the city, then throw himself from a bridge 
so precisely that his bomb would detonate near four tourists 
(including two Israelis).  This may well have been a 
deliberate attack rather than the accidental result of a 
pursuit. 
 
9.  (SBU) Comment continued.  The sketchy information 
available strongly suggests the attackers sought high-profile 
attacks against Western tourists.  The location of the 
downtown attack - in the city's most trafficked intersection 
steps from one of Egypt's most popular tourist attractions - 
as well as the injuries to tourists indicates that Westerners 
were the target.  The Citadel likewise is a standard stop for 
visitors to Cairo.  As with the attack in the Khan al Khalili 
tourist bazaar earlier in April, the tourism industry and 
ultimately the GOE must be considered targets as well.  The 
Egyptian tourism sector shrugged off the April 7 attack; 
hotels and tour operators reported few cancellations and 
tourists have been thick on Cairo's streets.  Tourism 
industry representatives will watch closely reaction to the 
latest attacks. 
 
 
Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo 
 
You can also access this site through the 
State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. 
 
CORBIN