In Photos: Abdeen blast aftermath

An early morning bombing outside the Cairo Security Directorate building shook the capital's Abdeen neighborhood on Friday, killing four and injuring dozens more, according to the government.

Large crowds gathered at the scene and were allowed to walk freely in front of the damaged building, despite an ongoing forensics investigation. 

The nearby Islamic Museum of Art was also badly hit in the blast, which destroyed parts of the facade as well as some of the historical artifacts housed within. The government estimates the extent of the damage will cost hundreds of millions of pounds to repair.

Broken glass and rubble from cars and local shops littered the street in downtown Cairo as other bombs detonated across the river in the Giza governorate. 

Those gathered outside the Cairo Security Directorate chanted in support of the military and raised banners bearing the image of Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. 

Many were quick to blame the Muslim Brotherhood for the attacks, despite the banned group's official condemnation of the bombings. This man sold posters depicting Sisi slaughtering Brotherhood leaders like sheep. Another bystander denounced the treatment of thousands of Brotherhood members jailed in the wake of President Mohamed Morsi's removal as too soft, because they are still "given food and water" in prison.

"Why are they keeping them in jail, they should execute them right away," she said. 

Fervent Sisi supporters took the opportunity to hand out flyers asking the military chief to run for president. 

A few hours after the blast, the sounds of an ode to the army, "Tislam al-Ayadi" (Bless Your Hands), could be heard issuing from a speaker mounted to this man's car as he drove near the site of the explosion.

Photos by Heba Afify.