Islamic State Claims Italian Consulate Bombing

At approximately 6:15am on July 11, a 450-kilogram car bomb laden exploded near the Italian Consulate in Cairo, Egypt. The Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on Twitter.

A street vendor was killed. Ten civilians were hurt, including a police officer and four children. None of the casualties were Italian. The main entrance to the building was destroyed, windows were broken, and pipes burst, leaving the building flooded. Due to the timing of the attack, which was early in the morning on a day when the Consulate is closed, the casualty count could have been significantly higher. Following the attack, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi about Rome’s support of Egypt’s counterterrorism efforts. Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni is scheduled to meet with Sisi on July 13.

The IS affiliate in Egypt is known as Wilayat Sinai (Sinai Province). The group, formerly known as Ansar Bait al-Maqdis (Supporters of Jerusalem), was inspired by Al Qaeda but pledged allegiance to IS in November 2014. Though it is a part of IS, it reportedly also works with Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Palestinian branch, to facilitate attacks on Egyptian security forces.

The IS statement of responsibility did not give a reason as to why the group targeted the Italian Consulate, though an IS-linked Twitter account tweeted that Muslims should avoid areas like the Consulate because those are considered to be “legitimate targets.” The New York Times reported that the statement of responsibility came from “Islamic State, Egypt” rather than from “Sinai Province,” which Wilayat Sinai typically uses, raising questions as to the veracity of the claim.

Wilayat Sinai has a history of targeting foreigners. On February 18, 2014, the group warned all tourists in Egypt to leave the country by February 20, 2014 or they would risk getting attacked. The February 18 statement followed a bombing attack on a tourist bus two days prior that killed two South Korean tourists and the Egyptian bus driver. The threat caused travel agencies to advise travelers to stay inside their hotels and a decline in tourism numbers.

Wilayat Sinai has a history of targeting foreigners, an affiliation with IS, and has conducted numerous deadly attacks on Egyptian military targets in the Sinai Peninsula. The group is highly capable, but it chose to bomb the Italian Consulate at a time when very few people were there. Given these circumstances, the attack on the Italian Consulate on July 11 seems to serve as a similar warning to the February 2014 warning to tourists, a move that is not typical of IS but is standard with previous actions by this particular organization. It typically targets the Egyptian military and police but may be seeking to increase its attacks on foreigners, including governmental and tourist infrastructure, in the future.