Thousands of people have protested outside a major Coptic Christian church in the city of Alexandria, Egypt last week over a drama that was allegedly offensive to Islam.

|PIC1|According to the latest report by Agence France-Presse (AFP), at least three people have been killed during the violent clashes between the police and the angry crowd as tension between Muslims and Christians was rekindled.

One of the victims, Mohammad Zakariya, died late on Friday of his injuries in hospital, the interior ministry told AFP Saturday. According to a police official, Zakariya had inhaled tear gas and had been trampled on. Two others died shortly after midnight after the police opened fire on the crowd with rubber bullets.

Meanwhile, approximately 20 policemen and 60 protestors were wounded, one police car and six other vehicles were burned in the clashes and 53 protestors had been arrested, the interior ministry added.

Security sources said more than 2,000 protesters, most of them believed to be Muslims, took to the streets of Alexandria in Friday evening after the prayer for breaking Ramadan fast, according to the United Press International (UPI).

The crowd was reportedly shouting "Allah Akbar" (God is great) as it marched on St. George (Saint Girgis) Coptic Church in the city centre. They claimed a drama produced by the Church was blasphemous, Reuters reported.

As the protesters hurled stones to the church and smashed the windows, the police attempted to disperse them by using tear gas. Many suffered from choking injuries but were not serious, security sources told Reuters.

Friday’s incident was the second mass protest over the play at the church in the past week after an earlier demonstration involving as much as 5,000 people.

The controversial drama entitled "I Was Blind But Now I Can See" was produced and performed inside the Church in 2003, according to the Independent Online South Africa (IOL).

|TOP|The drama features a Christian university student who converts to Islam when a group of Muslim men promise him money. When he becomes disenchanted with his move, the men threaten him to stop him from returning to his original faith.

According to the report by AP on Friday, the riots were triggered by the recent distribution of DVDs of the drama.

Over a phone interview with the AP, the church's director Rev. Augustinous, said it was difficult to explain the reaction to a one-time performance that took place two years ago.

"There are so many questions on what is behind all of that," he told the AP.

Meanwhile, Egyptian security officials accused Islamic militants of distributing the DVDs to stoke sectarian tensions ahead of legislative elections Nov. 9, according to AP.

Of Egypt’s 70-million predominantly Muslim population, approximately 8 to 10 percent are Christians most of which belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church.

According to Egypt’s Constitution, Islam is the official state religion, and Shari'a is the primary source of legislation. In addition, religious practices that conflict with the official interpretation of Shari'a are prohibited.







Eunice Or
Christian Today Correspondent