Inside Story

Are Christians being targeted in Egypt?

After the killing of 24 worshippers at an Orthodox Christian church, what can be done to prevent further bloodshed?

Egypt’s Coptic Christians have repeatedly accused the government of failing to protect them, and now that accusation is being shouted louder after a bomb attack killed 24 worshippers near the city’s main Coptic Christian cathedral.

Many of the victims were women and children attending Sunday Mass when an explosion tore through a female worshippers’ hall at St Peter’s church, which adjoins the cathedral.

Hundreds of Christians have since come out to protest about the attack, directing their anger at President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Magdy Abdel Ghaffar, the interior minister.

Coptic Christians, who comprise about 10 percent of Egypt’s 90 million people, have borne the brunt of political and sectarian tensions since the 2011 Arab Spring uprising.

So what can be done to prevent further bloodshed? And will this attack fuel further violence?

Presenter: Laura Kyle

Guests:

Bishop Angaelos – General Bishop of the UK’s Coptic Orthodox Church

Mohamad Elmasry – Associate Professor of media and cultural studies, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies

Carool Kersten – Senior Lecturer in the Study of Islam and the Muslim World, King’s College London