Religious extremists set fire to Christian homes in southern Egypt

Violence broke out in a southern Egyptian village last week after Muslim extremists set fire to several Christian homes and businesses, officials and religious groups said, in an attack apparently motivated by anger over the construction of a new church building.

The incident took place on Tuesday evening in the village of Al-Fawakher in Minya province, home to about 3,000 Christian families belonging to the Coptic Orthodox Church. The local Coptic community had recently been granted a permit to build a new church, which reportedly sparked resistance from Islamic hardliners in the area.

“It is believed that the attacks were caused by an attempt to build a new church in Al-Fawakher village,” a local source said. The new Arab news broadcast, speaking on condition of anonymity. The source claimed that when “religious fanatics failed to drive Christians out of their homes as punishment,” the extremists then “set fire to their homes while they were still inside.”

Please share this as much as possible

Islamists are now burning and destroying Coptic houses in Al-Fawakher village in Minya.

They post videos of what they are doing celebrating the music while carrying out the attacks and brag about it online pic.twitter.com/ORSmLzXO4D

— Ⲡⲁⲥⲟⲛ ⲛ̀Ⲕⲩⲡⲧⲓⲟⲥ (@miaphysenjoyer) April 23, 2024

Videos circulated on social media showing crowds celebrating in front of the burning buildings. Advocacy group Copts United said the “extremists attacked Coptic homes with stones and chants, and some were set on fire, amid the screams of women and children.” It added that security forces did not arrive until “a long time” after the attacks began.

In a rack On Wednesday, Coptic Bishop Anba Macarius confirmed that “security forces arrived and brought the situation under control and arrested the instigators.” He said that “government agencies will compensate those affected and hold the perpetrators accountable,” adding that “now there is peace in the village.”

The incident is just the latest sectarian violence against Egypt’s Coptic Christian minority, which faces legal discrimination and has long been persecuted. Conversion from Islam is illegal, Christians cannot hold top positions and terrorist attacks on churches are common, especially in Minya.

Copts United reported that a similar attack took place in another village on Friday due to the construction of a church.

The Egyptian government has been accused of downplaying the size of the Christian population, which is estimated at between 5 and 15% of the country’s 111 million inhabitants. Most belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church, which has its roots in the early church.

Christian leaders such as Mervyn Thomas of Christian Solidarity Worldwide condemned the “unacceptable culture of harassment and discrimination” that persists in the region despite government efforts.