Armed men attacked buses full of Coptic Christians traveling in Egypt’s Minya governorate on Friday, May 26, killing and injuring dozens of people in the latest attack on the country’s Christian population.
The governor of Minya said 28 people were killed and 23 others were injured. Al-Ahram reported that only three of the 40 children in the vehicles survived.
The buses and cars were carrying a group of Coptic Christians from Bani Suief to the St. Samuel monastery in Minya.
Victims of today's despicable attack in #Egypt were innocent women, men, children. Learn their names, among them a 2 and 4 year old. RIP. pic.twitter.com/WhyxyC8wa5
— Mai El-Sadany (@maitelsadany) May 26, 2017
In a statement, the interior ministry said a number of men on motorcycles or 4-wheelers began randomly shooting at the bus. Other reports said the assailants ordered people off the buses and lined them up before shooting them.
Hany, who spoke to a church official," they had them descend the buses and lined them up and shot them"
35 unconfirmed dead. https://t.co/FRZRZBkcTc— Amr Khalifa (@Cairo67Unedited) May 26, 2017
The shooting comes just weeks after twin attacks on Coptic churches killed more than 44 people and injured at least 100 others.
Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi has convened an emergency security meeting. His cabinet approved a three-month state of emergency following the Palm Sunday attacks at St. Mark’s Cathedral in Alexandria and St. George’s Coptic Church in Tanta. Islamic State claimed responsibility for both attacks.
On Friday night, the Egyptian air force carried out airstrikes on Derna in Libya in response to the attack. The strikes targeted a militant training camp, Sisi said.
El Sisi to Trump: I call upon Pres Trump, I trust you and trust your words and your ability to make terror fighting your number one goal https://t.co/5Ea3wSZdPh
— The Big Pharaoh (@TheBigPharaoh) May 26, 2017