Skip to main content

13 killed in sectarian clashes in Egypt

From Nima Elbagir, CNN
Egyptian Coptic Christians demonstrate outside the state radio and television building in central Cairo on Tuesday, March 8.
Egyptian Coptic Christians demonstrate outside the state radio and television building in central Cairo on Tuesday, March 8.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • NEW: The death toll is at 13, according to state-run television
  • The Egyptian military is launching an investigation
  • Egypt's health minister says 90 were wounded
  • The clashes break out after Copts protest a church burning
RELATED TOPICS
  • Egypt

Cairo, Egypt (CNN) -- Thirteen people were killed and 90 wounded in clashes between Coptic Christians and Muslims in Cairo, state-run Egyptian television reported Wednesday.

The clashes broke out Tuesday after Copts took to the streets to protest last week's burning of a church.

Earlier, Egypt's health minister, Dr. Ashraf Hatem, said the death toll was at nine. Coptic Church spokesman Father Abdelmaseeh Baseet reported six deaths previously Wednesday and said all the victims were Christians.

The Egyptian military has launched an investigation into the violence, said Mohamed Askar, armed services spokesman.

Those involved in "the incitement of sectarian hatred or involved in the acts of violence" will be held accountable "to the full extent of the law," he said.

A feud between a Muslim and a Coptic family is said to have led to the church burning in Helwan province last week.

In recent weeks, tensions have been high between Egypt's Muslim majority and its Coptic minority.

A Coptic church in the town of Alexandria was bombed on New Year's Day, killing 23 people. The Palestinian Islamic Army, which has links to al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for what was the deadliest attack on Christians in Egypt in some time -- but far from the only one.

Ten days later, a gunman killed a Christian man and wounded five other Christians on a train in Egypt.

Also in January, a man was sentenced for his part in an attack on another Coptic church a year ago, Egypt's state-run Al Ahram newspaper reported.

About 9% of Egypt's 80 million residents are Coptic Christians. They base their theology on the teachings of the Apostle Mark, who introduced Christianity to Egypt, according to St. Takla Church in Alexandria, the capital of Coptic Christianity.

The religion split with other Christians in the fifth century over the definition of the divinity of Jesus Christ.

Part of complete coverage on
'Sons of Mubarak' in plea for respect
Pro-Mubarak supporters believe Egypt's former president is innocent of charges of corruption and killing protesters.
Timeline of the conflict in Libya
Fighting in Libya started with anti-government demonstrations in February and escalated into a nationwide civil war.
Who are these rebels?
After months of seeming stalemate, Libyan rebels declared they were moving in on Tripoli. But who are they?
Why NATO's Libya mission has shifted
Six months and more than 17,000 air sorties after it began, NATO's Operation Unified Protector in the skies over Libya grinds on.
Interactive map: Arab unrest
Click on countries in CNN's interactive map to see the roots of their unrest and where things stand today.
Send your videos, stories
Are you in the Middle East or North Africa? Send iReport your images. Don't do anything that could put you at risk.
Libya through Gadhafi's keyhole
Behind the official smiles for the cameras some people in Libya's capital are waiting for the rebels, reports CNN's Ivan Watson.
How Arab youth found its voice
Tunisia's Mohamed Bouazizi not only ignited a series of revolts but heralded the first appearance of Arab youth on the stage of modern history.