An Egyptian militant group said Tuesday it had carried out an attack on an Egyptian police convoy in Cairo that killed three officers and wounded five.

The interior ministry said “armed elements riding in two vehicles” had approached a moving convoy near the main ring road around Cairo at around 11:45 pm Monday.

The Hasm group later announced on social media that it had “succeeded in eliminating a security patrol belonging to the interior ministry’s militias.”

The convoy was going through a roundabout on the main ring road around the capital when the gunmen attacked.

Police returned fire and attempted “to apprehend the perpetrators,” the ministry said.

Following deadly church bombings last month, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi declared a three-month state of emergency on April 10.

ISIL said it was behind the bombings in Tanta and Alexandria on April 9 that killed 45 people.

The military has killed several of the group’s top leaders, but the extremists have expanded their attacks from Sinai to other parts of Egypt, including Cairo.

Source: AFP