CAIRO, April 8 (AFP) - Three people, including a Frenchwoman and a US national, were killed in an explosion in a Cairo tourist hub, Tourism Minister Ahmed al-Maghrabi told AFP Friday.
"A French woman was killed and unfortunately a US national died overnight" of his wounds, said the minister, speaking from the Hussein hospital where the victims of the blast were rushed on Thursday.
"There is a third victim, who must have been very close to the explosion and whose body has not yet been identified," Maghrabi added.
He said that three Americans, two French and four Egyptians were still being treated at the hospital. One of the French nationals was in serious condition while the other wounded were stable, he added.
Initial reports on Thursday said up to 18 people had been wounded in the blast, but Maghrabi said several had already left the hospital.
A blast, apparently caused by a booby-trapped motorcycle, ripped through a bazaar which lies in the heart of Islamic Cairo and is very popular with the hordes of tourists who flock to Egypt each year.
It was the first attack targeting foreigners in the capital in seven years.
No claim of responsibility was made for the explosion but the Egyptian authorities launched an investigation and tightened security around several of the country's top tourist attractions.
04/08/2005 07:54 GMT