A bomb exploded in front of the Italian consulate in Cairo yesterday, killing one person, officials said, raising the possibility that Islamist militants will open a new front against foreigners in Egypt.

A security official told Reuters the blast was caused by a car bomb. State news agency MENA cited a senior security source as saying preliminary investigations indicated that a bomb was placed under a car near the consulate and remotely detonated.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the early morning blast, which caused heavy damage to the consulate. It shook other buildings downtown and could be heard in several surrounding neighbourhoods.

A Health Ministry spokesman said one Egyptian civilian was killed and 10 wounded. MENA separately said two policemen were among the wounded.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said there were no Italian victims in the blast. “Italy will not be intimidated,” he said on Twitter.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said militancy poses an existential threat to Egypt, other Arab states and the West.

One of the toughest security crackdowns in Egypt’s history has weakened the mainstream Muslim Brotherhood group, blamed by security officials for small-scale bombings. The Brotherhood says it is a peaceful movement.

Meanwhile Islamic State’s Egyptian affiliate, based in the Sinai, poses a major security threat. It has killed hundreds of soldiers and police since the army deposed President Mohamed Mursi of the Brotherhood in 2013 after mass protests.

Egypt has witnessed a recent increase in attacks against tourism targets, including a suicide bombing near the ancient Karnak temple in Luxor last month.

An attack on Westerners could signal a dangerous escalation of violence in the country, which is relatively stable in a region engulfed by militancy and sectarian conflict since the Arab Spring uprisings.