How jihadis are Killing Egypt's 'Soft Target' Christians to Undermine the State

Egyptians attend the funerals of victims of the Palm Sunday
bombings at St. Mina Coptic Orthodox Monastery 'Deir
Mar Mina', Alexandria, Egypt April 10, 2017.Reuters

By Mark Woods

Christian Today

The atrocities are the latest in a series directed against Egypt's Christians. On December 11, 2016, a suicide bomber entered the St Peter and Paul Church next to the Cairo Coptic Cathedral and killed some 30 worshippers.

From January 31, jihadists in North Sinai mounted a series of house-to-house and drive-by shootings in the coastal town of El-Arish after leafleting them with 24 hours' notice to leave or be killed. Seven people were murdered and hundreds of Christian families fled to other cities.

On February 17 an Egyptian affiliate of Islamic State released a video featuring the bomber who had died in the Cairo explosion, masked and vowing that 'we will come bearing explosives'.
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Shaw said: 'Although Christians are being targeted, it appears to be part of a wider strategy to destabilise and undermine the Egyptian state. Lower-level attacks against Christians – especially in rural areas where they are ineffectively policed – have been an ongoing problem in Egypt. But Christians are now being selected as a soft and easily identifiable target.

'For the jihadists of Islamic State they are also seen as one group who have no place in their vision of a strictly Islamic society. Typically attacks designed to strike terror have taken place during major religious or national festivals. This is true of the car bombing of Al-Qeddesine Church in Alexandria as long ago as New Year 2011.'

'Yesterday the bombers selected one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar in the knowledge that far larger numbers of worshippers – families included – would gather to mark the start of Holy Week. A further reason for the timing is probably the imminent visit of Pope Francis to Egypt from April 28-29.'

Christian Today report continues

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