In one of the most violent attacks Egypt has seen since the July 3, 2013 coup that deposed former President Morsi, a December 24, 2013 bombing at the Dakahliya Security Directorate in Mansoura, a region north of Cairo, killed 15 and injured 134 people. The explosion, which also caused severe damage to the directorate, the city council, the National Theater, and the United Bank, was identified as a car bomb by the armed forces upon further investigation.
Though security forces have been unable to trace the attack back to the culprit, residents of the area placed the blame on the Muslim Brotherhood, with a local teacher comparing their tactics to those of the terrorist group al-Qaeda. The interim government, headed by Prime Minister Hazem El-Beblawi, also suggested that the Islamist organization was behind the attack. The pro-Morsi National Alliance to Support Legitimacy, however, decried the attack while “asserting its peacefulness and denouncing all forms of bloodshed.” Other political groups including the Constitution Party (Dostour), the Free Egyptians Party (El Masreyyn el Ahrar), the Strong Egypt Party (Misr Al-Qaweya), the Popular Current Party (Al-Tayyar Al-Shaaby), the Islamic Groups (Al-Jama’a Al-Islamiya), and the Salafist Nour Party released statements denouncing the attack and calling for justice.