Sectarian strife does not exist in Upper Egypt’s Minya and all clashes between Muslims and Christians in the governorate are a result of “neighbor disputes,” said Minya’s security director Faisal Dweidar. “I visited the village of Kom Al-Lofy [in Minya] and the locals are living alongside each other more than naturally,” Dweidar said in statements to the press, adding that the discourse surrounding recent incidents of violence are aimed at creating confusion and chaos among citizens. Sectarian tension between Muslims and Christians has been rife in the past decade, with clashes often taking part in rural Egyptian cities. Coptic Christians make up approximately 16 percent of Egypt’s population, with 15 million Copts in Egypt. In late 2015, a 26-year-old woman was killed by her family after converting to Christianity and marrying a man from Fayoum. Minya in particular has borne witness to a number of clashes between Muslims and Christians over the past several months. In May, an elderly Coptic Christian woman was stripped and dragged through Karam village in Minya over rumors of a love affair between her son and a Muslim woman. According to Bishop Makarios, who reported the incident, the…
No Sectarian Strife in Egypt’s Minya, Clashes Caused by ‘Neighbor Disputes,’ Says Security Director
August 16, 2016
