More attacks against the Coptic minority
in Upper Egypt. A thousand Muslims attacked the predominantly Christian
village of el-Marashda (province of Quena, Upper Egypt).
Incited by
outside religious authorities, extremists burned down homes and shops
and tried to demolish the local church.
The attack, which took place
yesterday, was interrupted by the arrival of the police, who arrested 10
Muslims.
Since yesterday evening, a crowd of radical Islamic hav
eblocked access to the city, to prevent the police from taking those
arrested away.
The police responded by firing tear gas. For safety, the
authorities ordered the Christian population not to leave their homes
and the local parish has canceled the celebrations for the Coptic
Orthodox epiphany.
In solidarity with christian community, the Iman of
the village calls on muslim youth to protect Christian shops.
Anba
Kyrollos, Coptic Orthodox bishop of Nag Hammadi, said the group of
extremists, including many Salafis, attacked the village in revenge for a
Christian accused of abusing a Muslim girl of 6.
The rumors about the
pedophilia case had emerged in recent days, sparking tension between the
two communities, but police investigations have cleared the man. The
girl did not suffer any kind of violence.
The Salafis have attacked the
Christian village all the same, in spite of outcome of the inquiry.
Local
sources say that the representatives of the Christian and Muslim
communities, met this morning for a reconciliation. However, the police
continue to patrol the town for fear of attacks.
Yesterday's was the second attack in less than a week. On 15 January,
hundreds of Islamists demolished a building owned by the Coptic
Orthodox Church of St. George Taymah in the diocese of the Fayyum (Egypt
central 133 km south of Cairo).
After the fall of President
Mubarak and the rise to power of the Muslim Brotherhood and the
Salafists, attacks against churches and Christian buildings have
increased.
In the poorest areas of the country, but also in the capital,
cuts to public security and the army have left them powerless in the
face of these attacks instigated by Salafis.
With their money and their
promises, the extremists urge residents to drive Christians out to take
over their lands, taking advantage of the absence of a clear law that
regulates the construction of religious buildings.