Accessibility links

Breaking News

Britain Shuts Cairo Embassy for Security Fears


Map of Egypt
Map of Egypt

Britain has shut its embassy in Cairo over mounting security concerns in Egypt.

British officials gave no details Sunday of the threat or when the embassy would reopen. One source told the Reuters news agency that a suspected militant recently detained by Egyptian authorities had confessed to a plan to target foreign embassies.

The U.S. Embassy, in the same area of Cairo, was open Sunday.

The British Embassy's closing follows an Australian warning Saturday that terrorists could be planning attacks against tourist sites, government ministries and embassies in Cairo.

Egypt has been battling an Islamic insurgency aimed at the government of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, the former military chief who ousted the popularly elected Mohamed Morsi last year and then was elected himself in a new election.

  • 16x9 Image

    VOA News

    The Voice of America provides news and information in more than 40 languages to an estimated weekly audience of over 326 million people. Stories with the VOA News byline are the work of multiple VOA journalists and may contain information from wire service reports.

XS
SM
MD
LG