Egypt’s prosecution-general investigates new fire at another Coptic Orthodox church

Egypt’s prosecution-general has been investigating a new Coptic orthodox church fire that erupted in the capital's south, 48 hours after a major fire erupted in another church near Cairo claimed the lives of 41worshipers.

MENA

1 min read

Thaer Mansour

Egypt - Cairo

17 August, 2022

Christians make up approximately 10 per cent of the population of Muslim-majority Egypt. [Getty]

The prosecution-general is investigating a new Coptic orthodox church fire that erupted in southern Egypt that left no causalities, a statement released on Tuesday said.

The fire erupted inside a single unused, closed hall at Bishop Bishoy church in Minya province, south of Cairo, and luckily with no injuries.

This fire comes 48 hours after a major fire erupted in another church near the capital Cairo that claimed the lives of 41 worshipers.

A prosecutor examined Bishop Bishoy's hall where the fire broke out as crime scene investigators were assigned to trace evidence and several witnesses were identified to question, the prosecution-general's statement added.

Preliminary investigations revealed the fire resulted from a short circuit.

No further details were immediately available.

Christians make up approximately 10 per cent of the population of Muslim-majority Egypt; most of them are Coptic Orthodox. They are among the world's oldest Christian communities.