Coptic Church is planning to indict Egyptian Government

Seven months after terrorists attacked the Cathedral in Alexandria, the Coptic Church of Egypt is planning to proceed against the government for delaying investigations against the perpetrators. "So far, the Egyptian Christians are waiting for justice in vain – and, given Cairo's attitude of refusal, it is more than doubtful that the true circumstances of this crime will ever be uncovered and made public," said Ulrich Delius, Africa-expert of the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), on Friday. "Only the court proceedings against the overthrown dictator Hosni Mubarak are being prepared at full stretch and are to begin on 3rd August 2011 – while investigations on the terrorist attack against the Copts on New Year's Eve have fizzled. For the Christians, this is a bad experience because it shows them that they are still under an arbitrary regime and are still treated second-class." During the attack on the crowded church, which caused international indignation, 24 Copts were killed and 97 people were injured.

This week, lawyer Joseph Malak – who was assigned by the Coptic Church – announced that he is preparing to submit charges against the Military Council President, the Interior Minister and the Attorney General. Although many statements under oath were made by the Copts about what happened, there has been no official reaction to this day. Numerous suspects were released after several weeks of detention – and some of them reported to have been tortured by Mubarak's intelligence officials. It is also reported, that the young Salafi Sayed Bilal was even tortured to death in detention and was buried on 5th January 2011 under strict confidentiality.

At first, Mubarak's authorities had blamed terrorist network Al Qaeda for the attack. Later, Egyptian Islamists were accused of being responsible. Many Copts believe that the assault was a collaboration of Mubarak's intelligence and the Salafis to stir up conflicts between the different ethnic groups – and detailed reports of the British Embassy seem to confirm this. Alleged accomplices had reported to British diplomats about being forced to participate in the plot by intelligence officials.