Pope Tawadros II reveals details of Cathedral attack during brotherhood's era

CAIRO - 5 June 2024: In an interview with Mohamed El-Baz on the "Al-Shahid" program aired on "Extra News" channel, His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of Saint Mark, shed light on the details of the attack on the Cathedral during the Muslim Brotherhood's rule in Egypt.

"A few days after the Al-Hadidha events and the attacks that took place there, reaching the homes of Copts and the church, the attacks on the Cathedral (the Mother Church) occurred, specifically on April 7, 2013," Pope Tawadros recalled. "I was in Alexandria Governorate at the time, and I described this incident as collusion, which disturbed many officials at that time."

He added, "I was confronting the officials at the time with all firmness about how the Cathedral was attacked despite the tight security measures imposed on it. It is not a small church or inside a village, but it is located in the capital, in addition to its important symbolism for the Egyptian state.

This incident did not happen in previous history. We have seen attacks on small churches in remote places, but the central church was completely unacceptable."

"Mohamed Morsy contacted me by phone after the incident and told me that they were just attacks by ordinary citizens," he continued. "I did not accept his talk completely, especially when he told me that the attack on the Cathedral was a personal attack on him. I did not believe what he said, and that moment was very difficult for all of us."

Pope Tawadros II explained that Bishop Pachomius, who was in charge at the time, decided to withdraw from the constitutional committee during the Muslim Brotherhood era.

The decision was made because the discussions were veering away from national unity and the recognition of Egypt's Muslim and Coptic populations.