Fire destroys Cairo shanty town

A fire destroyed a shanty town in downtown Cairo on today, leaving about 1,000 people homeless, police and fire fighters said.

Five people were injured in the fire that engulfed Qalaat el-Kabash and destroyed some 250 wooden and cardboard shacks, said a police officer.

Lt Gen. Hassan Khazem of the Cairo fire department said the fire may have been caused by an explosion of a faulty gas cylinder.

However, a second police officer said the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit.