SALLOUM - Three Egyptians were killed in clashes between police and the Army on one side and residents of the western city of el-Salloum, bordering Libya, on the other. The violence flared on Saturday over the police's shooting of an alleged smuggler, a security official said. "Three citizens were killed in the clashes. Four police cars were torched outside the police station, where the clashes happened after a smuggler called Gomaa Abdel-Salam was shot dead," the official said. He added that the deceased was trying to smuggle copper piping into Egypt from Libya. "Abdel-Salam was taken to el-Salloum Hospital where his family and other local people attacked the police, angry at the way they had abused their power," the official explained. Abdel-Salam's father and another family member were injured in the incident, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "Talks are underway with senior tribesmen in the area to end the rioting, in which three rioters have been killed," the official continued, denying any deaths among police or army personnel. The ongoing violence in Libya has also made it much easier for smuggled weapons to make their way to Cairo. El-Salloum is located at Egypt's border with Libya and many Egyptian tribes have commercial and social ties with Libya.