By Darrin Simmons
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt-Three people, including an eight year-old girl, were shot dead by gunmen on motorcycles who opened fire on wedding guests outside a Coptic Christian church in Cairo.  At least nine others were wounded in the attack.

One source reported that the masked gunmen opened fire on the crowd randomly as guests were leaving the church.  It was not immediately clear if the three who were killed were Christians.

Coptic Christians make up 10 percent of the 85 million people who inhabit Egypt, and have generally coexisted peacefully with majority Sunni Muslims for centuries.  However, the army’s overthrow of Islamist President Morsi on July 3 has sparked the worst attacks on churches and Christian properties in years.

When General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, the chief of the army, went on television to announce that President Morsi had been removed from power, Pope Tawadros II appeared by his side.  The Pope has said that the “roadmap” laid out for by the general had been devised by “honourable people who had Egypt’s best interests at heart.”

Pope Tawadros’ II statement led many Islamists to believe that the church was somehow behind the overthrow of Morsi.  The Pope has received numerous death threats while many Christians have been killed while targeting Christian shops, homes, and businesses.

Bishop Angelos, from the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom, stated: “It’s terrible to see that in the light of recent attacks where Christians and Muslims are trying to get on with life, regardless of antagonism and violence, that even on a night like this, when people are trying to celebrate, people can lose loved ones.”

The Bishop went on to further say, “There are still some who wrongly accuse the Christians to be responsible for the ousting of the former president,” addressing the heightened tension and increased attacks on Christians in recent months due to the political situation.

Amnesty International reported that as of October 9, more than 200 Christian-owned properties were targeted and 43 churches seriously damaged across Egypt since the August 14 crack down on Morsi supporters in Cairo.

For more information, please the following:

Al Arabiya-Gunmen open fire at Egyptian Christian wedding-20 October 2013

Aljazeera-Deadly attack on Cairo church wedding-20 October 2013

BBC-Egypt gunmen open fire on Coptic Christian wedding in Cairo-20 October 2013

Reuters-Egyptian gunmen kill three outside church in Cairo suburb-20 October 2013