Outlawed Muslim Brotherhood leader shot dead at his apartment by Egyptian security forces

Egypt's security forces have shot dead a senior member of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood organisation, the country's interior ministry said. Mohamed Kamal, 61, was killed along with another member of the group during a shoot-out in his apartment in the capital Cairo, according to a statement carried by news agency Mena.

The Muslim Brotherhood said he had disappeared on Monday 3 October.

Kamal was wanted for several armed attacks. He was sentenced in absentia to life in prison for establishing an armed group and for an explosion near a police station.

Kamal was also wanted for the June 2015 killing of Egypt's chief prosecutor, Hisham Barakat. It was the first assassination of a senior Egyptian official in 25 years.

Egypt alleged Palestinian militant organisation Hamas was involved in training those who took part in Barakat's killing. The group denied the accusations.

Kamal was also alleged to have attempted to kill Egypt's former mufti, Sheikh Ali Gomaa, in Cairo in August 2016. However, a little-known group named Hasm later claimed responsibility.

The Brotherhood was declared a terrorist organisation when the army took control of the country in July 2013, in a coup which removed the organisation's leader Mohammed Morsi. He was replaced by a military government led by current President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.