Cairo bombing 'kills senior Egyptian policeman'

Bombings and shootings targeting the police have become common since the overthrow of President Morsi

A senior Egyptian police officer has been killed by a bomb blast in the capital, Cairo, security officials say.

Brig-Gen Ahmed Zaki died when a device placed under his vehicle blew up in the western suburb of 6 October City.

In Alexandria, a second officer was shot dead during a raid on what officials said was a militant hideout.

Jihadist militants have stepped up attacks on security personnel and killed hundreds since the army ousted President Mohammed Morsi last July.

On Saturday, gunmen killed an intelligence officer and a policeman while patrolling a desert road linking Cairo to the canal city of Suez.

That attack came a day after a policeman died in another bombing in the capital claimed by a group named Ajnad Misr (Egypt's Soldiers).

It says it is waging a campaign against police because of the state's crackdown on Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, in which more than 1,300 people have been killed and 16,000 others detained.

The insurgency threatens security ahead of May's presidential election, which former military chief Abdul Fattah al-Sisi is expected to win.

The retired field marshal has vowed to crush the militants.

In a separate development, the US will deliver to Egypt 10 Apache helicopters were held up after President Morsi was overthrown.

Secretary of State John Kerry said some of Egypt's annual $1.3bn (£770m) military aid package would also be released, after certifying to Congress that it was "sustaining the strategic relationship" with the US and "upholding its obligations" under the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty.