Release International

Thousands of Coptic Christians have taken to the streets to demand more protection after Islamist extremists torched and destroyed a village church near Cairo.

A mob of up to 4,000 Islamists exploded gas cylinders inside the Church of St George and St Mina in Sool village last Friday then demolished it over the course of Saturday.

This followed calls by a hardline cleric to 'kill all the Christians' – after rumours of an affair between a Coptic man and a Muslim woman, which is forbidden under Sharia or Islamic law.

Pastor Hoshea Abd Al-Missieh narrowly escaped being killed in the fire which engulfed his church. He described having to choose between being burnt alive or running the gauntlet of extremists outside the church.

Eventually, Pastor Hoshea chose to flee the flames – and was met outside by a man with a rifle. 'No one will touch this man: he is with me,' the armed man yelled at the mob, as he escorted Pastor Hoshea to safety.

Some reports say that the mob prevented the fire brigade from entering the village. Muslims have since set up blockades around Sool, claiming that they want to turn it into an 'Islamic village'.

Compass Direct news agency reports that the extremists prayed at the site and immediately started raising funds to build a mosque there. However, Reuters news agency reports that the Egyptian army has promised to rebuild the church by Easter.

Copts have held protests, demanding greater protection, outside a TV station in the Egyptian capital, 22 miles away from Sool, on at least two occasions since the attack. Moderate Muslims have reportedly protested with them. However, there have been clashes between Muslims and Christians in the capital this week.

Copts are still uncertain about the future in an emerging post-Mubarak Egypt. Since the popular uprising earlier this year, several monasteries have had confrontations with the army: at least three monasteries have tried to erect security fences around their property, which have then been torn down by the military. In Wadi Al-Natroun, soldiers used live ammunition to repel monks who tried to protest.

The country's new Prime Minister, Essam Sharaf, has reportedly begun a dialogue with Coptic leaders and further meetings are planned.

(Sources: Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Compass Direct, Middle East Concern, Reuters)

• Ask God to protect Pastor Hoshea and other members of the Church of St George and St Mina. Pray that their faith will be strengthened through this ordeal. Pray that they will indeed have a new building soon.
• Pray for Egypt's new Prime Minister, Essam Sharaf, as he grapples with the task of helping to shape a new Egypt. Pray that religious liberty for all will be high on his agenda.

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