Two killed in Muslim-Coptic clash in Egypt

Mar 5, 2011, 18:31 GMT

Cairo - Violent clashes between Muslims and Coptic Christians in a town south of Cairo left two men dead and a Coptic church in flames, Egyptian media reported Saturday.

Citing security sources, the media reports said the clash took place Friday between two families in the town of Sol, 90 kilometres south of Cairo.

The incident was triggered when local residents discovered that a Christian man from the town was having a relationship with a Muslim woman from a Cairo suburb, the security sources said.

The two dead from the clash were the fathers of the two families, including the father of the Muslim woman.

Then, after the funeral of the Muslim father, members of the Muslim community set fire to the Coptics' Martyrs' Church in Sol.

The incident underscores the ongoing tense relations between Egypt's majority Muslims and the Coptic Christians, who make up about 10 per cent of the country's population.

Around midnight last New Year's Eve, the bombing of a Coptic church in Alexandria killed more than 20 Christians. Authorities blamed the Al-Qaeda network for the bombing.

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