Egyptian police identify terrorist in deadly car bomb attack in Cairo

CAIRO -- The Egyptian police identified on Thursday the terrorist who killed 20 people using a booby-trapped car in the Egyptian capital Cairo earlier this week.

The man was named as Abdul Rahman Khaled Mahmoud who belongs to Hasm, an armed group affiliated to the banned Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's interior ministry said in a statement.

The terrorist's identity has been confirmed after matching his DNA with his family members, the ministry revealed.

The ministry said that its security forces have identified two hideouts of the terrorist cell behind the attack, adding that one of the hiding places was located in Fayoum province, 100 km southwest of the capital Cairo, while the other was in Shorouk city near Cairo.

According to the ministry, eight of the terrorists were killed during a shootout while attacking their den in Fayoum.

The statement said that "seven others terrorists were also killed during a shootout when the police forces approached their hideout in Shorouk city."

A number of the cell members have been arrested, the ministry said.

A total of 20 people were killed and 47 others were injured when a booby-trapped car driving from the opposite direction exploded Sunday night after hitting three other cars near the National Cancer Institute in downtown Cairo.

Right after the attack, Egyptian police said Hasm group had prepared the car, which was reported as stolen months ago, to carry out a terrorist attack.

Terrorism has been plaguing Egypt since the military ousted former President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 in response to mass protests against his government and his currently outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group.

Terror attacks, killing hundreds of policemen and soldiers in the restive North Sinai province, have gradually spread to other provinces in recent years. Most of these attacks were claimed by a Sinai-based group affiliated with the regional Islamic State militant group.