Bomb rips apart heart of Coptic Christians’ faith
EGYPT: Men, women and children filed in to Cairo’s Coptic Christian chapel on Sunday morning (local time), taking a moment of respite from the bustle of the Egyptian capital’s busy streets.
Situated in a complex at St Mark’s Cathedral, the congregation was worshipping near the seat of the Coptic pope and the heart of their religion.
Minutes later, a blast ripped through the congregation, on the side of the church usually used by women, killing 25 and wounding scores of others in an attack that was chilling.
Al-Bortosia chapel became the scene of a nightmare: windows smashed, the floor littered with body parts and pews smeared with blood.
It was uncertain how the bomb came to be inside the church, with some witnesses saying it was thrown through a window, while others claimed it was planted next to the altar.
But it was clear that Egypt’s Coptic Christians had suffered their deadliest attack in recent memory, with Islamist extremists among the chief suspects.
‘‘Dead bodies were scattered everywhere, I saw people with their heads cut off,’’ Qelleny Farag, 80, a member of the congregation, said as he searched for his wife after he escaped from the chapel unharmed.
Personal effects were scattered among the shattered glass, including a broken pair of spectacles, a child’s boot and a pink ribbon. ‘‘As soon as the priest called us
to prepare for prayer, the explosion happened,’’ added Emad Shoukry, another worshipper. ‘‘The dust covered the hall and I was looking for the door, although I couldn’t see anything. I managed to leave in the middle of screams and there were a lot of people thrown on the ground.’’
One witness said he had noticed a woman acting strangely before the service began, and claimed she planted the bomb by the altar. Others accused Egypt’s security services of incompetence.
‘‘There were no security, the security guards were having breakfast,’’ Samia Naem said.
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, condemned the ‘‘terrible attack’’ and said: ‘‘Let us pray in lament, protest and in hope for them, martyrs for Christ.’’
- Telegraph Group