MOBILE DEVICES
Free Headline Alerts     
Worldwide Web WorldTribune.com

  breaking... 


Thursday, November 25, 2010     FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

Christians riot in Cairo after government cancels building permit

CAIRO — Christians are battling Egyptian security forces amid a decision to halt church construction.

ShareThis

Hundreds of Coptic Christians hurled bricks toward police in violent protests of a government decision to withdraw a permit for the building of a church in Cairo.

"There has been fighting every night over the last few days," an Egyptian witness said.


Also In This Edition

Egyptian sources said about 3,000 troops, equipped with firearms, tear gas and batons, have been deployed in the Cairo neighborhood of Giza. So far, the clashes between Christians and police have left at least one Christian dead. The Christian was said to have been shot.

Another 30 people were reported injured and another 130 were arrested. The clashes, including an assault by 2,000 Copts on a government building, have continued for the last five days.

"Repeated police requests to cease violence were ignored by the demonstrators, placing the safety of local residents at risk," the Interior Ministry said. "At that point, security officials had no choice but to control and disperse the gathering through the use of tear gas."

In mid-November, Egyptian authorities canceled a permit for the construction of a church in Giza. Officials said the Christian community violated a building permit by disguising a church as a Christian service center.

"When we noticed indications that it was turning into a church, we told the church authorities to stop construction because a church would require a different licence," Giza Gov. Sayed Abdul Aziz said.

Human rights groups have asserted that the regime of President Hosni Mubarak has intensified restrictions on the Coptic community. Copts, denied most permits for church construction, were said to comprise about 10 percent of Egypt's population.

In 2009, the Egyptian government said Christians were operating 2,000 churches around the country. Egypt is said to contain more than 93,000 mosques.



About Us     l    Privacy     l    Geostrategy-Direct.com     l    East-Asia-Intel.com
Copyright © 2010    East West Services, Inc.    All rights reserved.