ISIS claims attack on Cairo church

One shooter was killed; 8 worshippers, 1 police officer died in assault

CAIRO — At least nine people were killed when gunmen opened fire on a Coptic Orthodox Church in Cairo on Friday, a church spokesman said, in the latest in a series of attacks on Egypt’s Christian minority.

The assault targeted the Mar Mina Church in the southern Cairo neighborhood of Helwan. At least one gunman was killed by police, spokesman Boules Haliem said by telephone.

“He did not manage to get in,” Haliem said of the gunman. Worshippers were attacked as they were leaving the church, he said, and at least eight were killed, along with one police officer. Eight more worshippers and a police officer were wounded.

“The church was full,” Haliem said. “They were attending Mass.” Photographs showed several bullet holes in the facade of the church.

The Islamic State extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement that was circulated on the messaging app Telegram.

The statement said that 10 people had been killed, and it described the victims as “crusaders” and “apostates.” The statement also said that one of the attackers had been killed.

The assault came just over a month after Egypt’s deadliest terror attack, in which more than 300 Sufi Muslims were killed at a mosque in the Sinai Peninsula, as the militant group steps up its campaign of violence against Egypt’s minorities.

The Islamic State declared its intention to attack Egyptian Christians last year as it seeks a stronger foothold in Egypt after defeats in Syria and Iraq. It has since killed more than 100 Egyptian Copts by bombing churches and attacking buses carrying pilgrims.

The group already had a strong presence in the northern half of the Sinai Peninsula, where it has been targeting police and military installations.

Egyptian state media also reported the death of a gunman, and added that another assailant — a gunman who also had a homemade bomb with him — was arrested later in the day.

It remains unclear exactly how many assailants were involved.

Officials gave conflicting accounts, with some saying that three men were involved and others calling it a lone wolf assault.