Sectarian violence erupted Friday afternoon in the village of Sharbat in al-Nahda district in Amriya, south of Alexandria.
Sectarian violence erupted Friday afternoon in the village of Sharbat in al-Nahda district in Amriya, south of Alexandria.
The violence came in the wake of a story leaked of an affair between a young Coptic tailor, Murad Sami Girgis, and a Muslim woman. A crowd of some six thousand Muslim villagers armed with sticks, clubs, and knives waged an attack against the village Copts. One house and three shops were burned. The police and fire trucks were called, but the Muslim villagers would not let them into the village until Alexandria governor Usama al-Fuli arrived together with local MPs and security officials.
A conciliation session was swiftly held at the local mosque, and it was decided that Girgis and his family should be banished from the village, after which peace reigned.
++Watani++ contacted Anba Pachomeus, Archbishop of Beheira within the area of which al-Nahda lies, for his comment. Anba Pachomeus said he was following up on the problem and would do his best to sustain the peaceful coexistence between the village Muslims and Copts. Wrongdoers should be taken to task, he said, but that should be done in accordance with and respect of the law.