• Copts
  • January 6, 2011
  • 2 minutes read

Amnesty International Condemns Church Blasts and Calls for Improved Protection Ahead of Coptic Christmas

Amnesty International Condemns Church Blasts and Calls for Improved Protection Ahead of Coptic Christmas

Amnesty International strongly condemned the deadly attack on a church in Alexandria which killed 23 and injured scores both including Muslims and Copts during a New Year midnight Mass.
 
The organization called on the Egyptian authorities to take the necessary and comprehensive measures to protect the Coptic Christians ahead of their celebration to be held on the eve of January 7.
 
The organization denounced the deliberate attacks against civilians, stressing the attack cannot be justified under any circumstances and are absolutely prohibited under international law. It stressed that the attack illustrated complete disregard for the right to life.
 
Amnesty International called for immediate investigations to be launched by the Egyptian authorities, urging them to be thorough and impartial. It called for the immediate trial and punishment of everyone who was involved, stressing it was only possible if the Egyptian authorities abided by their international human rights obligations.
 
Amnesty International called on the Egyptian authorities not to prosecute activists who were protesting in solidarity with the Copts or to quash the legitimate exercise of the rights to peaceful protest and assembly in violation of Article 21 of the ICCPR, which guarantees the right to freedom of assembly.