CAIRO
Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim's motorcade was hit by three explosive charges in an apparent assassination attempt on Thursday morning, security sources told Anadolu Agency.
The sources said that the charges had gone off as the minister's motorcade made its way from his personal residence in eastern Cairo's Nasr City district.
Two vehicles belonging to the minister's guards, along with another vehicle, were damaged in the blast, sources said.
Bomb disposal teams dispatched to the scene found that the charges had been planted in a motorcycle or other vehicle close to the minister's motorcade.
In an earlier statement, the Interior Ministry had confirmed that at least one explosive charge had gone off at 10:30am (Cairo local time) as Ibrahim's motorcade drove down Mustafa al-Nahhas Street in eastern Cairo.
The explosion caused several injuries among Ibrahim's guards and passers-by, the ministry said.
The statement, however, did not specify whether the charge had been planted or thrown at the motorcade from atop a nearby building.
According to the Health Ministry, at least seven people were injured in the explosion.
Authorities, meanwhile, have ordered an investigation into the incident.
A security source said the Interior Minister was expected to deliver an address on state television following the failed attempt on his life.
