Explosion at Cairo's Coptic cathedral kills 25, wounds dozens

A bomb explosion inside the main Coptic Christian cathedral in Egypt's capital, Cairo, has killed 25 people and wounded dozens.

Some reports say a bomb was lobbed into a chapel adjacent to one of the cathedral's walls but others said it was planted inside.

The spiritual leader of Egypt's Orthodox Christian community, Pope Tawadros II, has his office in St Mark's Cathedral in the centre of the city.

State television reported that a security official said a bomb made of TNT appeared to have been the cause of the explosion.

Ambulances lined up outside the church in the capital's Abbasiya district to evacuate the dead and wounded.

A crowd gathered outside the church chanted: "Tell the sheikh, tell the priest, Egyptians' blood is not cheap".

There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, but jihadists in Sinai have targeted Christians before, as well as Muslims they accuse of working with the government.

Cathedral worker Attiya Mahrous, who rushed to the chapel after he heard the blast, said: "I found bodies, many of them women, lying on the pews. It was a horrible scene."

Another witness Mariam Shenouda said: "Everyone was in a state of shock. There were children. What have they done to deserve this? I wish I had died with them instead of seeing these scenes."