Egyptian general killed in assault on militants

Egyptian security forces backed by armoured fighting vehicles and helicopters have stormed a town known to be an Islamist stronghold outside Cairo near the Great Pyramids, coming under barrages of fire from gunmen on rooftops.
By The Newsroom
Published 19th Sep 2013, 18:12 BST

A police general fell in the first moments of the battle at around 6am yesterday. Gen Nabil Farrag had just given a pep talk to his men on the street, preparing them to roll into the town of Kerdasa, when they came under a hail of gunfire, according to journalists.

Army soldiers and policemen ducked for cover behind armoured vehicles and behind walls. Gen Farrag was shot in his right side. He lay in the street for nearly 15 minutes until his men could reach him and carry him into a car to take to a hospital. The Interior Ministry later announced his death.

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The assault on Kerdasa underlined a stepped-up resolve by the military-backed government to suppress strongholds of supporters of Egypt’s ousted Islamist president, Mohammed Morsi. Earlier this week, a large army-police force stormed Dalga, a town in southern Egypt, to break the hold of Islamic militants who took control there after the military toppled Mr Morsi on July 3.

Kerdasa carries more strategic importance since it is a short drive away from Cairo’s centre and is near the Pyramids of Giza, Egypt’s primary tourist attraction.