Week of terror concludes with 28 Egyptian dead

CAIRO - 26 May 2017: At least 28 Copts, including children, were killed on Friday in a shooting in Upper Egypt, concluding a week of terror that has seen dozens killed in an terrorist attack at a concert in Manchester, England.

While on its way to St. Samuel Monastery in Minya governorate, south of Cairo, a bus carrying more than 50 Copts was intercepted by gunmen in three SUVs. A police hunt has been launched to apprehend the perpetrators and an urgent inquiry into the attack has been ordered.

The country has been on high alert, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi held a security meeting and directed the cabinet to take all required measures for the treatment of the injured.

Last week, Sisi was in Riyadh, attending the Arab-Islamic-American summit, during which he presented Egypt's strategy for fighting terrorism, stressing the necessity to terminate terrorist groups' ability to recruit new fighters. Egypt is in a "daily fight against terrorist organizations in Sinai," stated Sisi.

An emergency state has been re-instated across the country after two suicide bombings, for which the Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility, hit two churches last month, leaving 45 dead. More than 40 defendants are currently facing trial over alleged involvement in the attacks.

No groups have yet claimed responsibility for the attack on the Copts' bus on Friday morning; however, some international media outlets have likened it to IS-style attacks, citing the group's latest threat this month to target Christians in the country. On Wednesday, the US Embassy in Cairo warned its nationals in Egypt of a possible terrorist attack without mentioning further details, saying it is in contact with Egyptian authorities for additional information.

The attack, which took place a day before the beginning of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, was widely condemned by world leaders. The UN Security Council held a minute's silence to pay tribute to the victims of the Minya attack. In a statement, the council denounced the "heinous and cowardly" terrorist attack.

Russia described the attack as a "disgusting act" that demonstrated the "inhumane essence of international terrorists who do not stop at any cost to achieve their lowly goals."

Berlin showed solidarity with Egypt and said it cooperates with Egypt "to ensure that things like this don't happen again in future," according to the German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Martin Schaefer.

Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Palestine and Iraq decried the attack, affirming their full support of Egyptians in their fight against terrorism.

During his visit to Berlin, Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayeb commented on the attack saying, "No Muslim or Christian can ever disagree on the Minya attack, which targeted the stability in Egypt. I call on the Egyptians to stand together against brutal terrorism."

The head of Protestant Churches in Egypt, Andrea Zaki released a statement describing such attacks as "desperate attempts to instill fear in the country." He added that such "coward and fragile" attacks will not undermine the stability of the country nor Egyptians’ readiness to fight terrorism.

A celebration of the moon-sighting to determine the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, scheduled to be held by Egypt's Dar al-Iftaa, has been cancelled following the Minya terrorist attack.