Reports from Egypt say a bomb blast at a security checkpoint in Cairo has killed six policemen and wounded three others.

Four civilians were also hurt in the December 9 bombing on a street leading to the pyramids, the Reuters news agency reported, citing security sources.

It said the police were in or near their car when the bomb exploded near a garbage can.

A new militant group called the Hasm Movement claimed responsibility for the bombing shortly afterward in a posting online.

The group has claimed responsibility for several attacks in the country in the last few months.

The frequency of attacks has increased since 2013, when the military overthrew President Muhammad Morsi -- a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's oldest Islamist movement -- after large protests against him.

Egyptian authorities arrested Morsi's son on December 8 on charges of inciting violence.

Based on reporting by Reuters, dpa, and AP