Egypt bus driver kills 6, officials say

A disgruntled bus driver stopped his vehicle and allegedly sprayed gunfire Tuesday on a construction crew he was transporting to a work site south of Cairo, killing six laborers and wounding 16, security officials said.

A security official told the state-run Middle East News Agency that Mahmoud Taha Swellem was driving 22 people, including a finance manager and a department head, to a site near Giza when he suddenly took out an automatic weapon and opened fire.

FOR THE RECORD:
Egyptian shooting: An article in Wednesday’s Section A about an Egyptian bus driver’s alleged killing of six laborers and wounding of 16 gave the name of the driver as Mahmud Tasha Swelled. His name is Mahmoud Taha Swellem. In addition, the name of the reporter who wrote the article appeared as Amor Hassan. His name is Amro Hassan. —

Swellem, who had worked for the company for 20 years, was arrested at the scene. Police gave no motive for the shooting but it did not appear to be religiously or politically motivated. Some reports suggested that Swellem was depressed after being informed that his employer, Arab Contractors, was moving him to another job. Other reports said he was being pressured by neighbors to take part in an illegal dig for antiquities.

Founded in 1954, Arab Contractors was one of the largest and most prominent construction firms in the Middle East. For decades, working for Arab Contractors was a dream job for many Egyptians. But increased competition from Western and Arab companies took its toll on the corporation, forcing it to cut salaries and jobs in recent years.

Arab Contractors issued a statement confirming the shooting and publishing a list of names of the dead and injured employees.

Hassan is a news assistant in The Times’ Cairo Bureau.