Egypt’s Christians to celebrate Christmas amid heavy security presence
Egypt’s Orthodox Christians will celebrate Christmas Day on Monday, amid heavy security and army presence in all churches in the country’s governates to safeguard the major religious festival.
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi congratulated expat celebrators with the Christmas Day, wishing that the new year brings more security, stability, and prosperity to Egypt.
Meanwhile, Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria asserted on Friday that AlSisi seeks to establish the principles of national unity.
During his meeting with Andrea Zaki, the head of the Evangelical Church in Egypt, Pope Ta wad ros I I added that the Egyptian President respect all religions in the society, asserting that the inauguration of “the biggest Cathedral in the Middle East proved that”, a church statement stated.
For his part, Zaki praised Al-Sisi’s efforts in maintaining stability and security, expressing his pleasure to attend the inauguration of the new Cathedral in the New Administrative Capital, the statement added.
The majority of Egyptian Copts celebrate Christmas Day on January 7th of each year, which is a national holiday, but some Christian sects commemorate it on December 25th.
Celebrators usually attend masses and prayers in their churches, enjoying the religious festival with their families and beloved ones. When services end, people go home to eat a great Christmas meal, including all the food they abstained from during the Nativity Fast.
In order to secure Christians celebration with their festival, the military and the interior ministry cooperated to safeguard the vital installations, churches, and main streets to ensure a safe environment for celebrations.
According to the ministry, the security plan includes deploying security patrols and special forces at all vital and significant areas and cities, particularly worshipping houses.