By Salma Maher
Today, the 4th of September, a man was seen throwing an explosive device just across the street from the US embassy premises in Cairo. An eye-witness told Reuters that she heard a blast and then saw a man with a backpack that had caught on fire near Semiramis Hotel. The man was then thrown to the ground by security forces as the fire was extinguished, she added.
There are no casualties reported, however, the embassy has been put on lockdown following the possible detonation. The embassy took it to its Twitter account to say that it’s aware of the situation and is asking citizens to stay away from the area.
The area was cordoned off by security forces shortly after the incident and there was an unusually heavy police presence with dozens of officers nearby, Reuters witnesses said.