The Egyptian security authorities announced the killing of 4 prisoners sentenced to death after trying to escape from Tora prison in Cairo, and the killing of two officers and a recruiter while confronting them, according to an official statement.
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior stated that "4 of those sentenced to death and placed in death row in Tora prison tried to escape from inside the prison this morning (Wednesday)."
The statement added that the Insurance Force confronted them, "which resulted in the martyrdom of two officers and one policeman, and the death of the four convicts," without giving further details about the incident.
The statement stated that the prisoners are “Mr. Atta Muhammad, Ammar Al-Shahat Muhammad Al-Sayyid, Hassan Zakaria, Motamed Morsi, and Madih Ramadan Hassan Ala El-Din.
Press reports said that the four were convicted in terrorism cases related to the "Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis" group, which was operating mainly in the Sinai Peninsula.
On the other hand, commentators on social media have expressed their doubts about the official version that was initially reported by the media close to the authority, due to the tight security with which the Tora prison area, south of Cairo, is known.
The pioneers of the communication platforms shared a video clip, which they said showed that Ammar Al-Shahat, one of the dead prisoners, was in one of his court sessions singing a song.