By Nehal El-Sherif, dpa
30.06.2014
Cairo (dpa) – Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi vowed to continue fighting terrorism and pledged retribution after two police officers were killed when bombs went off near the presidential palace in Cairo.
The attacks fell on the anniversary of mass protests that led to the ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.
“On this memorable day, the first anniversary of the June 30 revolution, black terrorism still tries to stand in front of the will and aspirations of the people,” al-Sissi said in a televised speech to mark a year on the anti-Morsi protests.
He described Monday’s blasts as “terrorism that belongs to no nation or religion that does not hesitate in shedding the blood of children or those fasting."
A team of explosives experts were trying to diffuse two bombs near the palace when one of them went off, killing Colonel Ahmed Amin Ashmawy and injuring several policemen, the Ministry of Interior said.
Another bomb went off shortly afterwards as police were cordoning off the area to search for other possible explosive devices. The blast killed Lieutenant Colonel Mohamed Lotfy al-Sayed.
“Today, we lost new martyrs. I pledge before God and their families, the state will get fair and rapid retribution," he said.
The incident occurred at the same place where, a year earlier, thousands had staged protests against Morsi's one year in office.
The attacks, on the second day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, came days after synchronized bombings took place in Cairo's subway, leaving several people wounded.
Ex-army chief al-Sissi, who was sworn in as president earlier this month, has also vowed to protect Islam from extremists “attempting to defame Islam by linking it to violence and terrorism.”
He said the country will work on "correcting the religious discourse" and pass needed laws to "deter anyone who thinks of threatening our nations".
“We will show them, with deeds not words, that there is something worth living for,” he said, referring to suicide bombers.
Egypt has seen a spate of attacks, targeting mainly security forces, since the army deposed Morsi, on July 3.
An Islamist alliance, formed after Morsi's ouster, called on its followers to protest next Thursday, marking the anniversary of Morsi's ouster.
The military-backed government has blamed the unrest on Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood and designated it a terrorist organization.
The group has repeatedly denied links to violence and accused authorities of oppression.
Last week, a militant group said in a statement that it had planted bombs around the palace, but aborted the attack when people in civilian clothes filled the area.
In the statement, dated June 27, Ajnad Misr group, or Soldiers of Egypt, called on civilians to stay away from the area since government forces did not diffuse them.
The Sinai-based jihadist group appeared in January when it released statement vowing to launch attacks against security forces in retaliation for the government's crackdown on Islamists. It has since claimed responsibility for several attacks.