The patriarch of Egypt’s beleaguered Coptic Church has cancelled weekly audiences with worshippers for fear they would be targeted by Islamist militants loyal to Mohammed Morsi, the ousted President .
Pope Tawadros’s decision came after a coalition of Egyptian human rights groups warned that violence towards the Christian minority was spiralling out of control with authorities unable or unwilling to provide protection.
At least seven Christians have been killed, scores injured and thousands displaced in Islamist violence since Mr Morsi’s removal on July 3.
Egypt’s Coptic Christians, who make up 10 per cent of the population, have long suffered discrimination and persecution. Anti-Christian sentiment, however, gained fervour under Mr Morsi’s rule, stoked by inflammatory rhetoric from members of the Muslim Brotherhood-backed government.
Pope Tawadros, the