WASHINGTON— Bishop Joseph C. Bambera of the Diocese of Scranton and Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs has issued the following statement on this morning's deadly attack on a Coptic Church and nearby bookstore in Egypt.
Bishop Bambera's full statement follows:
"This morning, at least ten people were killed as armed men attempted to enter Mar Mina Church in Helwan City, south of Cairo and a nearby bookshop. Among the dead are two policemen. The assault took place as a gunman tried to breach the church's security cordon. It is estimated that over 2000 attacks on Coptic Christians by extremists have occurred in the last three years alone.
One week ago, on December 22, hundreds of Muslim demonstrators attacked an unlicensed church south of Cairo wounding three people. Demonstrators chanted anti-Christian slogans and called for the church's demolition. The interior of the church was completely destroyed.
Earlier this year, on May 26, masked militants opened fired on a bus packed with Coptic Christians, including children on their way to the monastery of St. Samule the Confessor in Maghagha, in Minya governorate. In that attack, 28 people were killed and 22 were wounded.
Full Story: http://www.usccb.org/news/2017/17-253.cfm