Iman Chairman condemns sectarian violence in Egypt

Thirteen people were killed and 140 others wounded in violence on Tuesday between Egyptian Christians and Muslims, as sectarian tensions that appeared to evaporate in the country's revolution resurfaced.

It was not clear how many of the dead were Christian or how many Muslim.

The Christians have been angered by last week's burning by a Muslim mob of a church in a Cairo suburb. Egypt's military rulers have since pledged to rebuild the church. But the protesters said they wanted more steps to improve the status of Christians.

About 2,000 of them cut off a main road running on the eastern side of the city and pelted motorists with rocks. The two sides fought pitched battles for about four hours on Tuesday night. Another crowd of about 1,000 protested outside the TV building in downtown Cairo.

Coptic Christians make up about 10 per cent of Egypt's population of 80 million.

Commenting on the violence, Ribal Al-Assad, the Chairman of the Iman Foundation, said:

"I condemn this mindless sectarian violence. I would like to extend my condolences to the families of those killed and to the wounded. The path of dialogue is key to preventing sectarian conflicts and bringing about understanding and mutual acceptance. I call upon Egyptian Muslims and Christians to avoid conflict and come together in a process of national dialogue and reconciliation. The Iman Foundation stands ready to play a part in this process. Egyptians must say no to sectarian strife."