Britannia Radio

Egyptian Christians fear further sectarian violence as Egypt crisis
continuesMarked increase in violence against Christians; Coptic pope gave his support 
to the ouster of Islamist former president Mohamed Mursi
Ahmad Al-Ghamrawi Asharq Al-Awsat Saturday, 17 Aug, 2013
http://www.aawsat.net/2013/08/article55313913

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Egyptian Christians fear that sectarian violence 
that will escalate in the coming days, after several churches and property 
owned by Christian citizens were targeted during bloody clashes across Egypt 
this week.

Egypt has witnessed sectarian violence against Christians in the past, and 
many say the recent attacks echo the bloody sectarian strife that climaxed 
in Egypt in the 1990s.

The recent wave of sectarian violence swept through the country after 
security forces attempted to disperse two Muslim Brotherhood sit-ins being 
held in protest against the ouster of the Islamist former president Mohamed 
Mursi by the Egyptian military in early July.

Asharq Al-Awsat spoke with Munir Naguib, a Christian lawyer from Cairo, who 
said: “Radical groups have targeted around 52 Christian facilities, 
including churches, monasteries and service centers, in more than nine 
Egyptian provinces since last Wednesday.”

The way events happened “indicates that they were not random,” Naguib said, 
adding, “Armed protests cannot take place in more than 40 locations across 
the cities and villages of Egypt at the same time without being arranged in 
advance. . . . This is impossible and not believable.”

When the two Brotherhood camps were dispersed earlier this week, radical 
Islamist protesters attacked state facilities and private property along 
with churches in several provinces. It was reported that churches were 
either stormed or set ablaze in Sohag, Minya, Beni Suef, Fayium, Asyut, 
Alexandria, Suez and Cairo.

Marian George, a Christian human rights activist, told Asharq Al-Awsat that 
several attacks against Christian properties have been documented.

“Several Coptic shops and properties were intentionally targeted, 
particularly in Upper Egypt,” she said.

“I saw a protest by bearded gunmen who stormed and threw patrol bombs at 
stores and pharmacies in Minya only because they had Christian names on 
their shopfronts,” she added.

Nevertheless, the activist emphasized that “our Muslim neighbors are 
protecting our houses as much as they can.”

A Christian activist group that calls itself the Maspero Youth Federation 
announced that it had documented 63 attacks against Christian facilities, 
including churches, Coptic schools, houses, hotels and vehicles.

The group said in a statement that “the Muslim Brotherhood’s criminal and 
terrorist activities against the great Egyptians continue to grow day by 
day, particularly against the Copts.”

Gen. Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ordered the army’s engineering authority to 
reconstruct all churches that have been damaged in recent attacks as quickly 
as possible, with all expenses to be paid by the armed forces.

Coptic Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria has supported the ouster of the 
Islamist former president Mohamed Mursi. Together with Ahmed El-Tayyeb, the 
grand imam of Al-Azhar, Tawadros II appeared next to Sisi when the latter 
read a statement announcing the removal of Mursi on July 3.