Over one thousands Islamic extremists attacked a Christian Village Egypt’s Qaryat Al-Bayda village, near Alexandria, when they heard rumors that a Coptic man was converting a home into a church. The extremists destroyed property and set the homes of over 80 families on fire in protest.
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Naim Aziz, a Christian man that was building the home for his son to live in, told the Daily News Egypt that the mob ransacked the home to destroy construction materials. Aziz and his brother were also attacked and left severely injured.
The mob then began chanting anti-christian slogans and even went as far as playing Islamic prayers over loudspeakers that were aimed directly at the homes of non-muslim residents. The chants continued even after police arrived and began taking people into custody. Six residents of the village and six Muslim extremists were arrested.
See video from the scene below:
After the arrests police forced the residents of the area, known as Copts, and their attacker to reconcile. Coptic activist Mina Abdelmalak, argues that this pressures the Copts to surrender their religious rights and makes them appear weak and like easy targets for Muslim extremists in the area. Abdelmalak stated to The Foreign Desk:
“Ever since (President Abdel Fatah) Sisi came into power, you see an increase in the negative tone against Copts…Under Sisi the Coptic communities get protection from the military which then fuels sectarian attacks against Copts,”
Violence against the Copts in the region is common. Just last month 300 Muslims looted and torched Christian homes, a 70-year-old Christian woman was stripped naked after accusing her son of having an affair with a Muslim woman.
Critics of SiSi argue that he is living in denial about there being an problem about Christians being attacked in Egypt. He is said to act only reactively instead of proactively. Copts in the region hope he will soon start combating religious extremist ideology that causes the attacks and prevent them rather than use police to disband them after they have started.
[revad2]
