CAIRO, Oct 23: A building at the US embassy in Cairo was evacuated on Tuesday after a white powder, which later tested negative for anthrax, was discovered amid the worldwide bioterror scare, an embassy spokesman said.

“Someone found a suspicious powder in the bathroom of the building,” spokesman Philip Frayne said, later adding that the tests in the embassy’s medical research centre revealed no trace of anthrax.

Around 150 people were evacuated from the building which houses the embassy’s consulate, administrative offices and press section after the powder was found on top of a paper towel distributor, he said.

Frayne said he could not speculate on the source of the powder and said the embassy did not know if it had been touched before being discovered. “We will continue our normal operations tomorrow (Wednesday),” he said.

At least 13 cases of anthrax, spread through the postal service, have been confirmed in the United States and three people have died from the disease.

The American embassy in Cairo is one of the world’s largest diplomatic missions, Egypt being the second largest recipient of US aid after Israel, benefitting from two billion dollars in military and economic aid a year.

Security measures have been boosted around Western embassies in Cairo where university students have demonstrated in their campuses against ongoing US strikes on Afghanistan.—AFP