At least eight killed in Egypt building collapse

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People inspect the area where a building was collapsed in Gesr al-Suez, Cairo, Egypt March 27, 2021. (Reuters)
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Emergency workers sift through the rubble of a collapsed apartment building in the el-Salam neighborhood, Saturday, March 27, 2021, in Cairo, Egypt. (AP)
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Updated 27 March 2021
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At least eight killed in Egypt building collapse

CAIRO: A multi-storey building collapsed in the Egyptian capital early Saturday, leaving at least eight people dead and injuring two dozen, Al Arabiya reported.  
Police cordoned off the area in Cairo’s Gesr al-Suez district while civil defense and ambulance forces sifted through the rubble in a search and rescue operation.  

"The governorate's crisis room was informed at 3:00 am (0100 GMT) of the collapse of a building consisting of a basement, a ground floor and nine (upper) floors," the Cairo governorate said in a statement.

It was not immediately clear what caused the collapse. But building collapses are not uncommon in Egypt due to illegal construction, and poor enforcement of regulations.

The Egyptian Public Prosecution ordered an urgent investigation into the reasons behind the collapse.
The incident in Gesr Suez occurred several hours after Egypt’s upper governorate of Sohag witnessed a catastrophic train smash that killed at least 32 people.


Iran says any US attack including limited strikes would be ‘act of aggression’

Updated 40 min 51 sec ago
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Iran says any US attack including limited strikes would be ‘act of aggression’

  • Foreign ministry spokesman said any state would react to an act of aggression as part of its inherent right of self-defense
  • Trump said Friday he was considering a limited strike if Tehran did not reach a deal with the US

TEHRAN: Iran said Monday that any US attack, including limited strikes, would be an “act of aggression” that would precipitate a response, after President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran.
“And with respect to your first question concerning the limited strike, I think there is no limited strike,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at a briefing in Tehran attended by an AFP journalist.
“An act of aggression would be regarded as an act of aggression. Period. And any state would react to an act of aggression as part of its inherent right of self-defense ferociously so that’s what we would do.”

Trump said Friday he was considering a limited strike if Tehran did not reach a deal with the United States.
“I guess I can say I am considering that,” he replied following a question from reporters.
The two countries concluded a second round of indirect talks in Switzerland on Tuesday under Omani mediation, against the backdrop of a major US military build-up in the region.
Further talks, confirmed by Iran and Oman but not by the United States, are scheduled for Thursday.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is leading the negotiations for Iran, while the United States is represented by envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Trump is wondering why Iran has not “capitulated” in the face of Washington’s military deployment, Witkoff said in an interview with Fox News broadcast on Sunday.
Baqaei responded Monday by saying that Iranians had never capitulated at any point in their history.