Six people were killed and 120 injured in sectarian clashes outside a church in Cairo on Saturday, officials said.
An angry group of Muslim Salafists attacked the Saint Mena Coptic Orthodox Church. They were upset over reports of a woman being held against her will after allegedly converting to Islam.
"With my own eyes I saw three people killed and dozens injured," said Mina Adel, a Christian resident. "There's no security here. There's a big problem. People attacked us, and we have to protect ourselves."
Egyptian Interior Ministry spokesman Alla Mahmoud said in a statement that six people were killed and 120 injured in the violence.
Every news story is headlined with phrases like "six killed in sectarian clashes," but from what I can tell all the six killed were Coptic Christians. More details from Al Jazeera:
Hermina, a parish priest, told AFP news agency that the dead were Copts who died when "thugs and Salafists fired at them" in the late afternoon attack.Is this the wonderful whiff of Arab Spring we smell in the air?
The church floor was bloodstained as wounded Christians were brought in for treatment.
Shahira Abu Leil, a blogger and activist, told Al Jazeera that Salafists were not involved in the clashes, and that attempts were being made to bring security to the area.
"A building was also set on fire, and people are trying to prevent a possible explosion from gas leakages," she said.