A crowd of Egyptian Muslims angered by rumours a woman had converted to Christianity clashed with police on Friday outside the church where they believe she has taken shelter, security sources said.
The disturbances outside the church in Kom Ombo near Aswan, around 1,000km south of Cairo, were the latest case of a rumoured conversion sparking strife between Christian and Muslim communities, an incendiary issue that has often fed sectarian tensions here.
More than 20 riot police trucks deployed outside the church, and the crowd threw rocks at officers who returned fire with tear gas, state news agency Mena reported.
The family of Sahar Touni, 36, who disappeared three days earlier, have told security forces they may storm the church unless she is found in seven days, the sources said.
It was however not possible to confirm whether Sahar was in the church.
Incidents of Christian-Muslim strife have increased in Egypt, an overwhelmingly Muslim nation with a Coptic Christian minority of about ten per cent, since the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011. This gave freer rein to hardline Islamists repressed under the removed president.
President Mohammad Mursi, a Muslim Brotherhood politician elected last year, has promised to protect Christian rights. [Reuters]
Religion of peace
Islam! Islam!! Islam!!! You are a curse to mankind. May your founder(mohammed) be given 72 vampires in hell!
IS BETTER 4 EGYPTIAN, IRAQ,IRAN, AFGAN, SAUDI,PALEST, LIBYA, YEMEN ETC TO ACCEPT JESUS AS THEIR LORD SO THAT THEY CAN EJOY PEACE
For anything that happing to christians americans are the root cause of it all, which they can not deny it all the terrorist have americans backup all in the name of humanright and freedom
@cj: nÃtorà tà ìwó wÃ
@nice day: ….and after ‘EJOY’ing peace, attend your churches of SATAN, GAY churches and get the right to MASTURBATE from Chris Oyakhilome of CHRIST Embassy!
There is no other name by which man can be saved other than the name of Jesus (Acts 4:12). No nation can enjoy peace without the people knowing Christ.”Jesus is the light of the world, he that followeth Him shall not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12).Causing trouble does not take you anywhere, accept JESUS today that it might be well with you.
You are telling the truth Zacheus. Christ is the prince of peace. Isaiah 9:6
Islam is a religion of peace whether you like it or not, so belive in oneness of Allah which have no patner or associate, the only truth is Islam and Islam is way is.
Live a life of crisis without CHRIST, HE IS the only souce of peace in the whole,u’ll only wasteur time seeking for peace elsewhere,u must b decieving ursef,i get solution anyway! Accept JESUS and live in PEACE 4EVER n EVER!!