Egypt

As Egyptians anxiously head to the polls this week to vote for a new president whom Christians hope will ensure fair treatment under the law, it has been reported that a local court has sentenced 12 Coptic Christians to life and acquitted eight Muslims involved in clashes last year that left two people dead.

The ruling, reported Monday by The Associated Press, found that the Christians were guilty of "sowing public strife" and killing two men in the April 2011 case that began with a Muslim bus driver's confrontation with security guards outside the home of a rich Coptic in the country's Minya province.

The bus driver had apparently complained about a speed bump outside the home and was allegedly beaten by the security guards. The man, unnamed by the AP, returned to his village and gathered supporters to accompany him to complain about the alleged beating at the offices of an ultraconservative Islamist group. more >>

As Egypt's first democratic presidential elections get underway Wednesday, the choices have narrowed down to two groups of candidates: Islamists and politicians once linked to former President Hosni Mubarak. Historically, neither of these groups have meant good news for the Christian community, but there are two secular candidates, Amr Moussa and Ahmed Shafiq, who experts agree would be better for religious minorities in Egypt.

If an Islamist president is elected in light of the mostly-Islamist parliament, religious freedom and the safety of the Christian community would be put in jeopardy, experts argue.

Moussa and Shafiq both served under Mubarak, who was ousted in Feb. 2011 following the Arab Spring revolution. These two non-Islamist candidates have become the most viable options for Coptic Christians, the largest Christian group in the Middle East and in Egypt, constituting about 9 percent of the country's population. more >>

Egypt's Coptic Christians fear they could face further persecution should an Islamist candidate win next week's presidential elections, as frontrunners vying for leadership stem from the Sharia-leaning Muslim Brotherhood. One of the major issues on their agenda is a controversial law that puts heavy restrictions on building and maintaining Christian houses of worship.

The emerging top Islamist candidates in the race include Abdul Moneim Aboul Fotouh, a former leading figure in the Muslim Brotherhood; Salafist candidate Hazem Abu Ismail; and the Muslim Brotherhood's own Khairat Al-Shater, who said in April that Sharia should become the ultimate law of the land.

Meanwhile, some Copts are hoping that candidate Ahmed Shafiq, former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's prime minister and a former military commander, would be the one to help end the discriminatory rules concerning building churches, Reuters reported this week. more >>

The two front-runners for the Egyptian presidency recently faced off during the country's first televised presidential debate, with religion and Islamic law dominating the discussion.

The Islamist candidate, Abdul Moneim Aboul Fotouh, a former leading figure in the Muslim Brotherhood who some fear may impose an Islamic state should he be elected, debated on Thursday Amr Moussa, the one-time Arab League chief and former foreign minister under Hosni Mubarak. Moussa, a moderate, is seen by experts as a favorable choice for Egyptians, who long for stability after more than a year of economic and political tumult and fear the rise of Islamic fundamentalism. Meanwhile, Fotouh has been reaching out to Islamists, liberals and supporters of the revolution, of which he was a supporter.

After the country's parliament was dominated by Islamist parties, the next big step in establishing a new government -- after Mubarak was ousted following the Arab Spring uprising of Jan. 2011 -- is choosing the new president. Egypt's presidential elections will take place on May 23 and 24. The president will be named in June. more >>

At least 11 people have been killed in Egypt, after a group of unknown assailants opened fire on protesters who had gathered in front of the defense ministry in the nation's capital.

Egypt's ruling military forces, which have been in charge ever since taking down former President Hosni Mubarak's dictatorship last February, have faced an increasing amount of international scrutiny for the numerous violent crackdowns on anti-government protesters.

The attackers who targeted the protesters in Cairo on May 2 used rocks, clubs, firebombs and shotguns to kill 11 people and injure 150 others, and although they have not been identified as of yet, many in Egypt believe they were acting on behalf of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), the BBC reported. The assailants were dressed as "plain-clothes thugs," which is reportedly well-known attire for government supporters. more >>

A recent "reconciliation meeting" between members of a Muslim mob that attacked a Christian-owned school in Egypt and school administrators was nothing less than an attempt at legalized extortion, the director of the school said.

In exchange for peace, members of the sword-wielding mob that stormed the school last month without provocation – and held two nuns hostage for several hours – initially demanded in the meetings that the school sign over parcels of land that include the guesthouse the Muslim extremists attacked.

Magdy Melad, manager of the Notre Dame Language Schools in Aswan Province, told Compass that despite the risk of more attacks, he refused the assailants' demand. Doing so, he said, would set a precedent in Aswan of Muslims attacking and seizing Christian-owned property and then using reconciliation councils to give the appearance of legitimacy. more >>