By Mohammed Effat
CAIRO: Thousands of Coptic Christians attended the funeral of 12 Copts who were killed in the Jan. 1 attack on Al-Qeddesine Church in Alexandria.
The funeral took place at Mari Mina Monastery in Borg Al-Arab and was attended by thousands of Copts who marched behind two ambulances holding the bodies of the dead.
At least 21 people were killed and 97 injured after an explosion went off in front of Al-Qeddesine Church (The Church of the Two Saints) as worshippers emerged from a New Year’s Mass.
Emotions ran high as the service got underway with many tearful mourners and others who fainted due to the sheer size of the crowd.
A protest commenced when the funeral ended with Copts chanting slogans against the government and the president.
“What wrong have they done to deserve this? We cannot celebrate anymore and we do not feel secure.” said Tharwat Samir, one of the attendants.
“This incident will definitely increase the gap between Muslims and Christians and will increase the tense and mistrust between them,” said Micheal Shawky. “All we want is to live in peace with our fellow Muslims but we cannot find peace anymore,” he added.
