MINYA
By Mahmoud Farouq
The death toll of sectarian clashes between Muslims and Copts in the Upper Egyptian province of Minya rose to four after an injured Copt died of his wounds on Saturday.
Abdel-Maseih Ayyad, 54, succumbed to wounds he sustained in clashes between villagers from Nazlet Ebeed and Al-Hawarteh in the southern province.
The violence erupted after a Coptic man from Nazlet Ebeed village built a house in the outskirts of the adjacent Al-Hawarteh village.
Muslims in Al-Hawarteh suspected that the building was meant to be a church and engaged in a verbal confrontation with the man's family, which later evolved into armed clashes.
Sectarian clashes involving Muslims and Christians are not uncommon in the most populous Arab country.
Christian Copts make up between 8-10 percent of Egypt's population of nearly 90 million people, according to unofficial estimates.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
