Egypt: Church activities cancelled due to threats

According to a report by Reuters on 13 July 2017, leaders of various denominations in Egypt (including the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Coptic Catholic Church) have decided to halt activities outside church buildings for the month of July. The decision was made after the Ministry of Interior warned church officials that Islamic militants might be planning an attack against Christians similar to the one carried out against Christians traveling to a monastery in May. There have been two recent high profile attacks perpetrated by Islamic militants, one against soldiers (Al Jazeera, 8 July 2017) and the other against tourists (Al Jazeera, 15 July 2017). Yonas Dembele, persecution analyst at World Watch Research explains: "The spate of recent attacks has given rise to fears that terrorist cells affiliated with the Islamic State group will once again strike against Christians in Egypt. While the decision to halt church activities is focused on events such as Christian camps, churches in Egypt are also enhancing their building"s security due to the increased fear of attacks. The pressure on Egyptian Christians seems to be getting worse each month; the constant threat of attack and the feeling of vulnerability is making life very difficult for them."