- Title: EGYPT: Christians in Cairo express fears after Alexandria church bombing
- Date: 2nd January 2011
- Summary: CAIRO, EGYPT (JANUARY 1, 2011) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FORMER ASSISTANT TO THE INTERIOR MINISTER, MOHAMED NUR AL-DIN, SAYING: "The threats that were received, whether from inside or outside of the country, were taken seriously by the security forces and they did increase security. But I call on wise religious leaders, Christians and Muslims, to immediately interve
- Embargoed: 17th January 2011 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Egypt, Egypt
- Country: Egypt
- Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Religion
- Reuters ID: LVA965X8N2XZIJ8DXM2XTRL4KJSY
- Story Text: Christians in the Egyptian capital say they are shocked by the bombing of a church in Alexandria that killed 21 people last night - the Muslim Brotherhood condemns the attack.
Egyptians reacted with shock on Saturday (January 1) to the bombing of a church just after the start of New Year which killed at least 21 people.
Security was increased at churches around Cairo, with police removing nearby cars and setting up checkpoints near churches in the downtown area.
While the explosion outside a church in the Egyptian city of Alexandria was originally thought to have been caused by a car bomb, Egyptian authorities are now blaming the attack on a foreign-backed suicide bomber.
At a church in the Bulaq neighbourhood in Cairo there was disbelief at the attack, which came after an al Qaeda-linked group in Iraq issued a threat against the Church in Egypt in November.
"I'm surprised because we knew that there was a genuine threat. So there should have been security. So how did the car get there? And how did this explosion happen? That's the question. We don't know," said Samira Hilmy.
Muslim-Christian tensions have been high in Egypt over the past year, which began with the drive by shooting of six Christians in southern Egypt.
Sela, who worships at the Bulaq church, said that the security services should have known this attack was coming.
"It's a tragedy of course. The whole country is going to be sad this year, just like it was sad last year. But this time it is going to be harder because the last time it was something wrong but we got past it. But now it has happened again and people knew it would. The threats were there and the security services knew that something was going to happen. So what should the people do? Not pray? Not celebrate our holy days?" he said.
Dozens of people were wounded in last night's blast, which scattered body parts, destroyed cars and smashed windows. The attack prompted Christians to protest on the streets, and some Christians and Muslims hurled stones at each other.
But there was condemnation from Muslims in Cairo this morning, with one man saying that there could be no possible religious justification for the attack.
"This is a very bad thing of course and it is something that is not part of any religion or religious law or human justice and anyone who talks about general principles of humanity would reject it and would be disturbed by what happened. But when we look at the causes of such incidents there are two scenarios before us - either it could be unseen hands from abroad, maybe Israel for example as it always a suspect in conspiracies. It is behind similar incidents that caused sectarian strife. Or, in the second scenario, the people are feeling oppressed after the latest parliamentary elections and they have do not have various means to express themselves," said Yasser Farrag.
The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist organization which is Egypt's largest opposition group, was quick to condemn the attacks and senior member Essam El-Erian called for a thorough investigation.
"Muslim Brotherhood are very sad and sorry for such crime, which means a new generation of crimes about bomb of cars in Egypt, it's a very new generation of crimes. And also we condemn and deny any relation between Egyptians and such crimes. We need a full investigation about all aspects of such crime, which is a very new one and it comes after threaten from abroad and from penetration of Mossad also to some people in Egypt to kill to. We want to discover everything about such a crime. We want the prosecutor to go in depth to find all aspects which are related to such a crime, to clarify the situation," he said.
A statement on an Islamist website posted about two weeks before the blast called for attacks on Egypt's churches, listing among them the one hit. No group was named in the statement.
The al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq, which claimed an attack on a church in Baghdad in November, had threatened Egypt's Church over its treatment of women the group said the Church was holding after they had converted to Islam.
Today a former assistant to Egypt's powerful Interior Ministry said that all evidence now points towards a suicide attack.
"The Interior Ministry put out a statement and when the Interior Ministry puts out a statement it means it has accurate information, that the incident is not a bomb blast or a car bomb, but a suicide attack. And when it says it is a suicide attack it has it its possession human remains and DNA and so forth," said Mohamed Nur al-Din.
Nur al-Din also called on religious leaders to do their part to make sure the attack does not increase sectarian strife.
"The threats that were received, whether from inside or outside of the country, were taken seriously by the security forces and they did increase security. But I call on wise religious leaders, Christians and Muslims, to immediately intervene and make their positions clear, to lessen the negative reactions from both sides, so that matters do not escalate and that the attackers do not succeed in their goals," he said.
Christians make up about 10 percent of Muslim-majority Egypt's 79 million people. Tensions often flare between the two communities over issues such as building churches or close relationships between members of the two faiths.
But analysts said today's attack was on a much bigger scale and appeared far more organised than the kind of violence that usually erupts when communal frustrations boil over. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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