By Essam Fadl
CAIRO: Army and police forces intervened late on Sunday to end sectarian clashes between Muslims and Copts in Saft El-Laban, Giza, arresting 10 people from both sides after a rumor that Copts were attacking Bilal Mosque, the village’s biggest.
Eyewitnesses told Daily News Egypt that unknown assailants attacked homes owned by Copts on Sunday evening, claiming that Copts burnt down Bilal Mosque. The events escalated to clashes between Muslims and Copts using guns and knives and causing light injuries to eight people from both sides.
Imam of Bilal Mosque Shiekh Ibrahim Sharara told Daily News Egypt that things calmed down by Monday morning after the army and police forces intervened, stating that nobody knows what exactly happened.
“It seems that outsiders not from the village spread rumors that Copts burnt down the mosque which led to the clashes,” said Sharara.
Saft El-Laban witnessed similar sectarian clashes in 2004, when police detained many involved in the clashes from both sides for 40 days until a reconciliation agreement ended the turmoil.
