Islamists Massacre Two Coptic Families in Egypt

by Gil Ronen

News of an Islamist massacre of two Christian Coptic families [Copts are the native Egyptian Christians.] has emerged from Upper Egypt with the return of Internet connections to the country, after a one-week Internet blackout imposed by the troubled regime. The massacre, not the first in Egypt in recent weeks, took place on Sunday afternoon (January 30) at the village of Sharona near Maghagha, in Minya province, and is being reported by AINA, the Assyrian International News Agency.

According to the report, the Islamist murderers, aided by Muslim neighbors of the Christian Copts, stormed the homes of the families, gaining access to the houses' roofs from the roofs of the families' Muslim neighbors. They killed eleven, including children, and seriously injured four more people.

Anba Agathon, Bishop of Maghagha, told Christian Coptic Dr. Mona Roman in a televised interview on Al-Karma TV that the killers are neighbors of the Christian Copts, who "seized the opportunity of the mayhem prevailing in Egypt and the absence of police protection to slaughter the Copts."

The bishop said that he had visited the injured Christian Copts at Maghagha General Hospital and that they informed him that they recognized the main attackers, who come from the same village, Sharona.



"The two families were staying in their homes with their doors locked when suddenly the Islamists descended on them," said Bishop Agathon, "killing eleven and leaving for dead four other family members. In addition, they looted everything that was in the two Coptic houses, including money, furniture and electrical equipment. They also looted livestock and grain."

One group of masked assailants infiltrated the home of Christian Copts Joseph Waheeb Massoud and killed him, his wife Samah, their 15-year old daughter Christine and 8-year-old son Fady Youssef. Another group simultaneously accessed the house of Christian Copts Saleeb Ayad Mayez and shot him dead, along with his wife Zakia, their 4-year-old son Joseph and 3-year-old daughter Justina, Saleeb's 23-year-old sister Amgad, his mother Zakia and a woman named Saniora Fahim.

"The massacre has nothing to do with the mayhem in Egypt," the bishop said, "but the murderers took advantage of the lack of police protection and thought they could commit their crime and no one would notice."

"Why have those Islamists chosen those two Christian Copts families and not Muslim ones to slaughter and rob? I believe it is because they know that with Christian Copts they can literally get away with murder," accused Christian Copt Dr. Hanna Hanna.

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Church in Egypt Bombed, Security Officials Say

Security officials told The Associated Press that an explosive device was detonated

The explosion comes amid nearly two weeks of civil unrest in the North African country. Protesters have been on the streets demanding that President Hosni Mubarak, who has ruled for 30 years, step down.

Christians, meanwhile, have been forced to gather in their homes for prayer, fearing their safety if they were to meet at church.

At the start of the New Year, 23 Coptic Christians were killed and 80 were injured in a church bombing in Alexandria. The attack was condemned by church, human rights, and world leaders.


The latest attack on Saturday was against Mar Girgis church in the town of Rafah bordering the Gaza Strip.

Christians, who make up eight to 12 percent of the population, have been calling for more protection from the state. Amid the ongoing protests, they are praying for a new Egypt, with democracy and freedom for the persecuted minority.

Mubarak announced on Tuesday that he will not seek re-election in September. But anti-government protesters don't plan to stop their demonstrations until Mubarak resigns.

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US MSM on reporting this.

Disturbing news, but not surprising. Times of general disruption provide many opportunities for acting-out by outlier sub-cultures. If America were to undergo a period of this kind of disruption, I have no doubt that the Michigan Militia or the White Arian Resistance people would take advantage of the situation to initiate the "revolution" for which they have always been lickin' their chops.

Nation of Islam would love this type of chaos.
Who would they target first? Whites or Jews?

Every day americans kill muslims from Pakistan to Iraq and it is government sanctiond. I could list the attrocities commited with the full blessing of the US government and military. . When a country is on the wrong side of morality its hard to get worked up over an isolated incidint like this. For all we know these so called "christians" could have been Mobarak collaborators and were victims of a mob vengance. Once again the lack of intellectual honesty rears its ugly face on the threads of mingle.

There has been recorded and documented scenes within the Egyptian protests of the coptic christians protecting muslims at prayer from Mubarak's supporters and also of muslims protecting christians. This is a fact, the two religions standing together to face down their Western backed dictator.

Of course there was some religious violence which took place but there will always be fanatical and ignorant extremists in every human organisation, such is human nature.

However, these are always in the minority.

Muslims extremists and fundamentalists are a minority as are christian extremists and fundamentalists.

The Egyptian protests were not sparked by a religious idea, there were protesting to kick out their western backed dictator of 30 years and install a democratic government.