The terrorists tried to prevent the Christians from escaping their burning homes, but fortunately, no one lost their lives in the attack. 

Around 3,000 Christians reside in the village of Al-Fawakher, and they have recently obtained permission to build a new church. The violent raid happened following several threats from Islamic extremists. The Archbishop of Minya, Abna Makarios, reported these to local authorities. Even though the police attended the scene and promised to arrest the perpetrators and locate misplaced people, many of the Coptic Christians are still missing.

The Islamic group posted a video of the burning homes on their social media page, featuring the terrorists singing in the background. 

The Archbishop of Minya posted the latest news that the police have detained the perpetrators. Egyptian authorities have not yet released an official statement on the incident. 

Egyptian Christians have been fighting to have equal rights with the Muslim majority and to build new worship premises freely. Even though discrimination against Christians is low in large Egyptian cities, in Southern communities, it becomes more severe. The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights recorded at least 77 attacks on Coptic Christians between 2011 and 2016 in Minya, where the majority of the country’s Christians live. The Archbishop himself survived an assassination attempt over a decade ago. 

Coptic Christians are banned from holding sovereign ministerial positions or posts at security agencies. They are also presented from legally running for presidential elections; Christians must follow Islamic Law Sharia in most matters.

Source: https://www.persecution.org/