[Pharo Of Egypt]

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Immediate Release Phone:
202.737.3660 or 1 866.3.COPTIC


Update on Attack of St. George Coptic Church


Washington (09/25/03) -Following reports of the attack on St. George's
Coptic Orthodox Church in Assiout, Egypt, the U.S. Copts Association
published details of the incident. The security forces have since withdrawn
from the church and parishioners who had been imprisoned during the assault
have now been released. The issue is now resolved.

In the aftermath of the assault, police forces claimed justification for
the raid, stating that there had been a suspicion that hashish had been
illegally cultivated on church grounds . This unsubstantiated claim reflects
the consequences of an enduring dispute between the historic church and the
local authorities. St. Georges Church had been involved in a lengthy legal
dispute with the local officials. However, ultimately a court order had
issued the church complete ownership of its property, and the matter was
believed to be resolved.

Subsequent reports revealed that in their attack on the church and its
members, the police forces stopped short of an assault on the Holy
Sacrament. Instead, security forces confiscated the holy bread (El Orban)
until they had completed their search of the church; earlier reports had
confused this with an assault on the Sacrament.

The baseless grounds for the official harassment of the church and its
members demonstrate Egypts persistent attitude towards the countrys Coptic
minority. Such actions reveal the perseverance of dangerous ideologies of
intolerance flowing through the veins of Egypts local governments,stated
Michael Meunier, President of the U.S. Copts Association.
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