A group of masked gunmen on Wednesday robbed a gas station located on Egypt's Cairo-Ismailia highway, stealing LE150,000 from the station's safe before fleeing the scene.

The Cairo Security Directorate is currently searching for the culprits, while the Cairo prosecutor's office has been asked to launch a formal investigation into the crime.

Gas station workers told Al-Ahram's Arabic-language news website that the culprits had been armed with automatic rifles.

According to the World Economic Forum's recently released Travel and Tourism Competitiveness index, Egypt now holds the lowest ranking out of 140 countries – just behind Pakistan, Chad and Yemen – in terms of safety and security.