A manhunt has been launched for the attackers, but the search so far has been inconclusive.
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Cairo has formerly been rocked with a number of assaults on civilians and security forces performed by suspected Islamist militants.
The Ministry of Interior said a preliminary investigation indicated that the attack happened after a dispute between the nightclub staff and a group of youths. Meanwhile, Egypt’s state-run news agency MENA reported there were three men, who arrived on a motorcycle and flung a few Molotov cocktails into the club and then fled the scene.
Attacks have also targeted policemen and government buildings in the capital, several of them claimed by an Islamic State group affiliate.
Interior Ministry spokesman Abu Bakr Abdel-Karim said police were looking for six people over the attack, which came after two people were banned from entering the business in the Agouza district. They had visited the El Sayad nightclub that night and not been allowed to enter, and officials say one may have been a vengeful former employee fired by the restaurant, Reuters reports. First, three motorcycle-borne masked assailants threw Molotov cocktails on the club, apparently after a dispute with the club’s staff over their entry. Flames have been burning the inside the building & charring the facade of the restaurant, located on the bottom floor of an apartment building.
Mr Hassan said that all the victims were employees of the nightclub – 11 men and five women.
The restaurant was in the basement, with only one door leading out, making it harder for people to escape.
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However, three people were reportedly wounded, raising speculation they might have been passers-by or just outside the club.
