Egypt: Churches Condemn ISIS Attacks on Coptic Christians
- Updated Feb 28, 2017
Attacks against Christians in Egypt continue to increase, and now the Protestant Churches of Egypt have issued a joint statement of support for those facing religious persecution.
In recent months, Coptic Christians have been the targets of violence from Islamic extremists, particularly the Islamic State.
In December, an attack on a Coptic Christian church killed 28 and injured nearly 50 others. A few weeks ago, a Coptic Christian schoolteacher was gunned down by a suspected Islamic State militant. Also recently, a Christian father and son were killed when militants broke into their home and shot them.
The mother of the family, Nabila, shared her grief: “I asked them 'what did you do to my son?' They were carrying weapons on their shoulders and pistols...I was screaming 'what did you do to my son?' They told me to go out, they held my hand and threw me out on the street.”
The Islamic State also recently released a video in which they claim their attacks on Egyptian Christians are “only the beginning” and that Christians are their “favorite prey.”
Due to the severity and frequency of the attacks, the Protestant Churches of Egypt issued a statement saying that they “condemn the terrorist acts of murder and displacement that occurred recently in the North Sinai, targeting citizens—especially Christians—in Arish and other neighboring cities.”
Christians make up around 10 percent of Egypt’s population. Egypt ranks 21st on Open Doors 2017 World Watch List of countries where Christian persecution is most severe.
Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com
Publication date: February 28, 2017
