The World in Brief

Egyptian security forces inspect the scene after a roadside bomb went off on a busy street in downtown near the foreign ministry, in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2014. Security officials said the Sunday explosion targeted a police checkpoint near the back gate of the ministry building. Several people were wounded, and senior policemen killed said the officials. (AP Photo/Aly Hazzaa, El Shorouk) EGYPT OUT
Egyptian security forces inspect the scene after a roadside bomb went off on a busy street in downtown near the foreign ministry, in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2014. Security officials said the Sunday explosion targeted a police checkpoint near the back gate of the ministry building. Several people were wounded, and senior policemen killed said the officials. (AP Photo/Aly Hazzaa, El Shorouk) EGYPT OUT

Cairo roadside explosion kills 2 officers

CAIRO -- A roadside bomb went off Sunday on a busy downtown Cairo street near the Nile-side Egyptian Foreign Ministry, killing two senior policemen, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The 10:45 a.m. blast targeted a police checkpoint near the back gate of the 34-story ministry building. Several people were wounded, the ministry said. It identified the two officers as Lt. Cols. Khaled Saafan and Mohammed Abu Sreeah. It said several other police officers were wounded by the blast, including a police major general and another lieutenant colonel.

Security officials said seven people were injured in the blast and that security forces evacuated four nearby schools as a precaution while bomb squad teams combed the area searching for more explosives.

The officials said police on Sunday defused three similar roadside bombs planted in the Nile Delta cities of Tanta and Mahallah.

Turkey mum on hostage-release details

ANKARA, Turkey -- The Turkish government won't reveal details of a covert operation that ensured the release of 49 people held hostage by the Islamic State group, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday.

The hostages -- 46 Turks and three Iraqis -- were returned to Turkey on Saturday after more than three months in the hands of the Islamic State group, which captured them when it overran the Iraqi city of Mosul in June.

"There are things we cannot talk about," Erdogan told a group consisting of some of the hostages and their families. "To run the state is not like running a grocery store. We have to protect sensitive issues. If you don't, there would be a price to pay."

What Turkey did or did not promise to the Islamic State group has been a subject of speculation since even before the the hostages were released. Many observers expressed disbelief that the ruthless militant group would have relinquished such a big bargaining chip without getting something in return.

In comments to journalists made later in the day, Erdogan denied having paid a ransom, although he was far less categorical when asked whether the government had swapped prisoners with the terrorist group.

"Whether there was or wasn't a swap -- 49 personnel were returned to Turkey," Erdogan said. "I would not exchange that for anything."

55 migrants rescued after boat capsizes

ROME -- The Italian coast guard said a cargo ship has rescued at least 55 migrants from Libyan waters after their rubber dinghy capsized. Several bodies were spotted in the sea and up to 30 people might be missing, they said.

Coast guard officials said after the dinghy used a satellite phone to request help Sunday afternoon, a Singapore-flagged merchant ship rushed to the scene, but the migrants' boat capsized just before its arrival. They said "several" bodies were spotted in the sea and that search efforts were continuing for up to 30 missing. Coast guard officials based in Rome said the dinghy's capacity was about 100 passengers.

Egypt to host talks on Gaza, cease-fire

RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Egypt will host a brief round of indirect talks this week between Israelis and Palestinians on a sustained Gaza cease-fire deal, as well as negotiations between Palestinian rivals Hamas and Fatah on who should run the territory, a Palestinian official said Sunday.

Both sessions will be Tuesday in Cairo, said Azzam al-Ahmed, an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev declined to comment.

Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas fought a 50-day war in Gaza that ended in late August. Under the deal that ended the fighting, Israel and Hamas were to return to Cairo within a month to hold indirect negotiations on a broader deal for Gaza.

Hamas demands that Israel and Egypt lift their blockade of Gaza, which was imposed after Hamas seized the territory from longtime rival Abbas in 2007. Israel has said it can only end the closure if Hamas disarms, a demand the group has rejected.

-- COMPILED BY DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF FROM WIRE REPORTS

A Section on 09/22/2014

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