COPTIC Christians in the Upper Egypt governorate of Qena have urged President Hosni Mubarak and the Government to end the violence, which has erupted in two villages in the province, after six Christians in the southern town of Naga Hammadi, were killed by three Muslims in a vendetta on Coptic Christmas Eve. "We call on President Hosni Mubarak to take all possible measures to ensure the security of Christians including sending the Army after the Interior Ministry failed to make us feel secure," a statement from Coptic residents in Naga Hammadi said.
Residents of Bahgoura, a village in southern Egypt, were furious yesterday after houses and shops owned by Coptic Christians were set alight, as tensions continue to flare in the wake of the deadly drive-by shooting in Naga Hammadi on Wednesday night.
"Some five houses, a supermarket, two workshops and three cars belonging to Muslims and Christians had been set ablaze in Bahgoura against the background of the Naga Hammadi killings," a security official said yesterday.
He added that security troops were deployed right across the village to bring the clashes to a halt and restore order.
Men in traditional flowing robes and with crosses tattooed on their arms surveyed the damage in Bahgura, where shopfronts, once blue and green, were now charred black after overnight arson attacks.
They charge Muslim "thugs" who live in the town with going on the rampage on Friday night, lobbing fireballs into Christian-owned shops and some houses.
Muslim residents said the action was in retaliation for the shooting dead of a member of their community, while Christian villagers said a woman from their community had died in fire attacks on property since the violence began.
Security sources denied there had been any deaths.
Since the Christmas Eve attack, there has been sporadic unrest in Naga Hammadi, Bahgura and in the nearby mixed hamlet of Ezbet Tarka.
Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud ordered an urgent trial for the three Naga Hammadi suspects, who admitted that they had committed the crime in retaliation for the rape of a Muslim girl last November.
"Seven charges will be filed against the suspects, including spreading terror in society," a legal source said.
