State media in Egypt say a police brigadier-general was killed when three bombs went off near Cairo university. At least five other people were injured.
State TV named the officer as Tariq al-Mirjawi, the head of Giza's investigation department.
The first two bombs went off within minutes of each other on Wednesday, with the third about two hours later near a riot police post outside the main gate at the university's faculty of engineering.
The BBC reports the area around the university has been a battleground for clashes between police and student supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood in recent weeks.
The interim government outlawed the movement at the end of last year, declaring it a terrorist organisation.
The government says almost 500 people have been killed since last summer, most of them policemen and soldiers.