Scores killed in clashes between Egyptian Coptics and security forces

CAIRO (BNO NEWS) — At least 17 people were killed on Sunday when clashes erupted between Egyptian security forces and Coptic Christian demonstrators in the capital of Cairo, officials said.

An estimated 10,000 Copts were marching from the Shubra district in northern Cairo to the state television building in central Maspero Square against religious persecution when protesters were attacked by stone throwing mobs. A 15-minute battle ensued as the Coptic protesters fought back and hurled stones at their assailants, the Al-Ahram daily newspaper reported.

Eyewitness accounts posted on Twitter claimed people being shot by the armed security forces and attacked by plain-clothed thugs, while some vehicles were set alight. Videos posted to YouTube showed armored personnel carriers being driven through the crowds at high speeds, and security forces used tear gas to disperse protesters.

More than 140 people were injured during the clashes and transferred to nearby hospitals for treatment. Hossam Bahgat, director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, posted on Twitter that he saw 17 bodies in the morgue at the Coptic Hospital.

The protest, which was organised by the Maspero Youth Union, was against an attack on a Coptic church on September 30 in the southern Egyptian province of Aswan. The protesters also demanded the removal of the province’s governor for justifying the attack on the church.

Protesters also showed outrage at the increasing attacks against Copts in recent months and the army’s lack of protection. They also called for the resignation of the chairman of the military council, Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi.

Sectarian clashes between Muslims and Christian Copts have increased in the past year. There are around 8 million Christian Copts in Egypt, which represent about 10 percent of the population, and Sunday’s clashes were the worst since the revolution earlier this year.