16 June, 2014. CAIRO — Masked armed men, suspected to be Islamic militants, kidnapped two Coptic Christians in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula in two separate incidents, and clashes between Egyptian security forces and Islamist supporters of deposed president in the capital left one policeman dead on Monday, officials said.
The abductions come as Egypt’s designated Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab is finalizing lineup of new cabinet due to swear in, following the election of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, the former defense minister and military chief.
El-Sissi’s ouster last year of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi — and the subsequent crackdown on Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood — garnered him strong support among Egypt’s Coptic Christian minority, who make up about 10 per cent of Egypt’s population.
Still, Christians have continued to be targeted by Islamic militants either as retaliation for their support to el-Sisi or for the sake of hefty ransoms. Coptic organizations have reported dozens of abductions since Morsi’s July 3 ouster — most in the south, where large concentrations of Christians are located near strongholds of Islamic groups.
In the northern Sinai — where about 10,000 Copts live — the military has been waging an offensive against Islamic militants who have escalated attacks and suicide bombings against police and military since Morsi’s removal.
Security and church officials said Monday that in the north Sinai city of el-Arish masked gunmen snatched Wadie Ramses, a prominent surgeon who runs the city’s first private-owned hospital around midnight Saturday after they opened fire on his vehicle, wounding him in the leg. Hours later, they demanded a ransom of 10 million Egyptian pounds ($1.4 million).
On Monday, a Christian merchant named Gamal Shenouda was abducted near his house in el-Arish in daytime, but no ransom demand had been made yet. Security officials said that authorities are investigating, officials said.
A church official based in el-Arish said that the abductions have caused a state of panic among Christians in northern Sinai, with some considering leaving the area. Last year, dozens of families abandoned their homes in the nearby Rafah town near borders with Gaza Strip, after attacks by extremists on Christians there.
All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the security concerns.
Full report here: 2 Christians kidnapped Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula | Deseret News