Attack on Minya churches repelled by residents, security forces

admin | 29 July 2013

July 28, 2013

morsi-copt-churchMuslim youth and security forces protected Al-Azraa and Anba Ebram churches from attacks by alleged Morsi supporters in Minya on Saturday, spokesperson of the archbishop of Mawas monastery Amgad Ezzat has told state-owned MENA agency.

“They threw molotov cocktails at Al-Azraa and Anba Ebram churches but were not able to break in as nearby Muslims and Christians were securing the churches,” said Ishak Ibrahim, researcher at Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). He added that the protesters tried to storm in El-Eslah church but were prevented. “However, both El-Eslah church and an annex of the Catholic church were raided before, on 3 July,” he said.

Al-Dostour Party member Mohamed Attallah claimed that Muslim Brotherhood protesters “vandalised shops in Palace Square, raided an Al-Dostour party exhibition and beat up Al-Dostour member Mahmoud Mamdouh and stole his phone.”

“None of the [assailants] were arrested or charged with anything,” said Attallah.

Ibrahim said Minya has witnessed significant tension, adding that a Christian man and child were killed before the mass 30 June protests as a result of continual incitement against Christians.

During the 48-hour ultimatum given by the Minister of Defence Abdul Fatah Al-Sisi to former president Morsi, the latter’s supporters attacked many Christian homes and killed the wife of a Christian man, who was accused of discharging a firearm while protecting his home, said Ibrahim.

Ibrahim added that seven Christian families fled Minya out of fear of being attacked, emphasising that “the security forces’ presence is not proportional to the size of tensions in the city.”

Reports of sectarian strife have been increasing since protests on 30 June, spanning many governorates, such as Luxor, where four Christians were killed; North Sinai, where a Coptic priest was killed and a Christian shop-owner was decapitated; Port Said, where a church was attacked; and Marsa Matruh, where Christian shops were looted.

Both the EIPR and Human Rights Watch have urged investigations into these recent sectarian attacks and have insisted on scrutinising the role of the security forces in the clashes.

Source: Daily News Egypt

Since you are here…

…we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong.

Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable.

For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir.

If everyone reading Pravmir could donate 5 euros a month, they would contribute greatly to our ability to spread the word of Christ, Orthodoxy, life's purpose, family and society.