DHAKA: Egypt’s public prosecutor, Hisham Barakat, has been killed in an apparent bomb attack on his car in Cairo.

Barakat died of his wounds in hospital, a government spokesman told the BBC.

Two bodyguards were also injured in the attack, which targeted the vehicle in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis.

Barakat has referred thousands of Islamists to trial since the overthrow of president Mohammed Mursi in 2013.

Hundreds have been sentenced to death or life imprisonment, as part of a crackdown on supporters of the banned Muslim Brotherhood.

Jihadist militants have meanwhile stepped up their attacks on Egypt’s security forces.

Barakat is the most senior figure to have been targeted for assassination since a 2013 attempt on the life of the then-interior minister.

BDST: 2028 HRS, JUN 29, 2015
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