Eurasia Press & News
CAIRO (AFP) – Thirteen people were injured and six arrested in southern Egypt on Saturday when a land dispute sparked a clash between Muslims and Christians, a security source said, in a sign of growing tensions between both communities.“Six people were arrested, after police broke up the fight which left 13 people injured,” the source told AFP.
Reda Fahmi, a Coptic Christian from the southern town of Madamud near the historic city of Luxor, was ordered by a judge to give back land to Mohie Abul Magd, a Muslim, following a legal dispute between the two, the source said.
Fahmi, along with family members and supporters then tried to reclaim the land by force, resulting in a clash between both parties in which six Muslims and seven Copts were injured.
It was Egypt’s fourth reported sectarian clash since Thursday.
On Friday, fighting erupted between Muslims and Copts in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria following a row between a young Copt and the son of the imam of a local mosque.
On Thursday, several people were hurt and police arrested 13 Muslims and Copts, also in the northern city, while 35 people were arrested in sectarian clashes in the village of Saft Meydum, south of Cairo.
Copts are estimated to form six to 10 percent of Egypt’s 76 million people.