CAIRO — Masked gunmen riding in three SUVs opened fire Friday on a packed bus taking Coptic Christians on a visit to a monastery south of Egypt's capital, killing at least 28 people, including two children, authorities said.
Twenty-two others were reported wounded.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, the fourth to target Christians since December, but it bore the hallmarks of the Islamic State group. The bloodshed came on the eve of the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
For years, Islamic militants have been waging an insurgency mostly centered in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, though a growing number of attacks have recently also taken place on the mainland.
The bus came under fire on a side road in the desert on its way to the remote monastery of St. Samuel the Confessor in Maghagha, about 140 miles south of Cairo.
The monastery, reachable only by a short, unpaved route that veers off the main highway, is in Minya province, where Christians account for more than 35 percent of the population, the highest level of any province.
Security officials quoted witnesses as saying they saw eight to 10 attackers in military uniforms and masks.
Arab TV stations showed images of a bus riddled with bullet holes, with many of its windows shattered and bloodstains on the seats. Bodies lay on the ground, covered with black plastic sheets. Children could be heard screaming hysterically in the background.
Security and medical officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters, said the death toll stood at 28 but could rise.
Local officials said the dead included two little girls, ages 2 and 4.
Read Saturday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.