CAIRO
The assassination of Egyptian Prosecutor-General Hisham Barakat in a car bombing on Monday has drawn condemnation from the UN and a number of world governments.
Barakat was killed by a car bomb that struck his motorcade as it passed through an area of eastern Cairo.
In a statement, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the bombing.
“The secretary-general extends his condolences to the family of the deceased and to the government of Egypt and hopes for the swift and full recovery of the injured,” Ban’s office said in a statement.
The White House, for its part, said it stood by the Egyptian authorities in their fight against “terrorism.”
“The United States stands by Egypt at this difficult time as we continue to work together to fight the scourge of terrorism," it said in a statement.
The European Union, meanwhile, likewise described Monday’s bombing as a “terrorist attack.”
“We express our condolences to the family of Egypt’s prosecutor-general, Hisham Barakat, who died following a terrorist attack in Cairo this morning,” the EU said in a Monday statement. “The EU reaffirms its commitment to support Egypt in its fight against terrorism.”
The Turkish Foreign Ministry also condemned the assassination.
“We condemn the terrorist attack that targeted government employees in Egypt,” the ministry said in a statement.
There has been no claim of responsibility for Monday’s attack, which came on the eve of the second anniversary of the June 30 protests, after which, former President Mohamed Morsi was overthrown in a military coup.
Egypt has been dogged by instability ever since Morsi’s overthrow, with authorities waging a ruthless crackdown on dissent.
The crackdown, which has mainly targeted the ousted president’s supporters, has left hundreds dead and thousands behind bars.
‘Cowardly act’
The Qatari government denounced the assassination of Egypt’s top prosecutor as a “criminal act.”
“This criminal act runs counter to all values, principles and heavenly religions,” Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The killing also drew condemnation from Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Jordan.
Rights group Amnesty International, meanwhile, described Barakat’s assassination as a “cowardly” act.
“The killing of Public Prosecutor Hisham Barakat was a despicable, cowardly and cold-blooded act of murder,” said Said Boumedouha, Amnesty International’s deputy Middle East and North Africa program director. “If the rule of law is to prevail in Egypt, judges and prosecutors must be free to do their jobs without the threat of violence.”
“However, the Egyptian authorities must not use such threats as a pretext for trampling upon human rights,” he added.
