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According to a report received January 6 from the U.S. Copts Association, the raid took place on the morning on January 5, when six hundred soldiers crying, "God is Great!" converged on the center, along with two bulldozers. The soldiers partially destroyed the perimeter fence and set fire to some of the buildings. During this recent attack, Bishop Botros, who heads the center, attempted to intervene. As he did so, the driver of a bus was reported to deliberately swerve toward the bishop. Some of the staff members who rushed to protect him were struck by the vehicle. One of them, Kirilos Daoud, was killed. Army officials deny any responsibility, saying that the driver lost control of the bus.
The Patmos Center serves to educate and assist mentally disabled children and orphans. It has been attacked numerous times in the past six years. The latest attacks are supposedly because of a law passed in January 2003, requiring all walls to be more than one hundred metres back from the Cairo-Suez road. Workers at the center have noted that the wall around the army barracks is only fifty metres from the road and several mosques along the road are closer than one hundred metres.
Pray for the family of Kirilos Daoud, as well as for those injured. Pray that this issue at the Patmos Center will be finally and completely resolved, so that they can continue the work of reaching out in the name of Christ to those in need in the Cairo area.
For more information on persecution in Egypt, click here.
Click on images below for a larger view from the U.S. Copts Association | |
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Population
