Just as the death toll was rising following
violent clashes between police and supporters of Mursi’s government in
Cairo, a tweet was sent from Coptic Pope Tawadros II’s Twitter account,
which read: “Thanks thanks thanks ... For all of the open doors
of hope for all of us: Egypt's great army, the police, the people of
Egypt Egypt inherent.” This thank you message has naturally sparked huge controversy in Egypt.
Right from the moment Muslim Brotherhood member President Mohamed Mursi was ousted from power, the leader of the largest Christian Church in Egypt has always made his support for the army clear for everyone to see: right after armed forces chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced Mursi’s overthrow, Tawadros II appeared on television alongside the great Imam of Al-Azhar University, Ahmad al Tayyeb, giving his blessing for the new political path the country was taking.
During Friday’s anti-terrorism demonstrations instigated by General Al Sisi, the Coptic Church made its position very clear, inviting faithful to fast alongside Muslims this Friday of Ramadan and to ring church bells at sunset.
The following morning’s tweet reiterated this stance, despite the heavy death toll being witnessed.
This has enraged Islamists further as they have always accused Tawadros of keeping quiet about violence committed by the army against Mursi supporters. The accusations have been made across social networks.
Interdenominational tensions in Egypt are running higher by the minute: Islamists have been branding the Copts as “instigators of the coup” for weeks now.
In the three weeks since Mursi was ousted from power, there have been countless attacks against churches and about ten Christians have been killed, including Coptic priest Fr. Mina Aboud Sharween, who was shot in the twon of Arish in northern Sinai.
Last Tuesday, Human Rights Watch published a detailed report documenting the violence against Christians in the torrid post-Mursi period. The organisation encouraged Egyptian authorities to do more to stop sectarian violence in an increasingly polarised situation.
The latest events in Egypt risk pouring more fuel on the fire.
The concern is not so much about what could happen in Cairo , where the army has the situation under control, but in other more isolated parts of the country, such as Upper Egypt, where churches are an easy target for Islamist hatred. Meanwhile, another worrying warning sign has come from Syria: The Islamist Jabbat al Nusra group which has become the Christians’ biggest nightmare in Aleppo and Damascus has issued a fatwa to the Egyptian Jihad saying that “Cairo’s army and Bashar alAssad’s army are the same thing.”
Alarm bells begin to ring again for Egypt’s Copts.