ISMAILIA // Said Sameh Adel Fawzy knew it was time to leave his home in Egypt’s northern Sinai town of El Arish.
Islamic militants had barged into his uncle’s house, shot him and his son dead, then looted the place and set it on fire.
The 35-year-old Christian, who owns a plumbing supply business in El Arish, packed up a few belongings and took his family to the Suez Canal city of Ismailia, joining hundreds of Christians fleeing a spate of sectarian killings last week.
“My cousin went to open the door after he heard knocking,” Mr Fawzy said, speaking from a youth hostel where authorities were putting up dozens of families who fled the town.
“Masked extremists, terrorists with a pistol, took him inside and shot him in the head,” before dragging his screaming mother out to the street half-dressed and killed her husband. The woman, still in shock after the Tuesday night slayings, sat nearby.
“They’re thirsty for the blood of any Christian,” said Wafaa Fawzy, the sister-in-law of Saad Hana, the man who was killed along with his son. “They were pretty clear when they said they won’t leave any Christian in peace. They want an Islamic state.”
The killings, two of seven brutal slayings in recent weeks, come after a devastating ISIL suicide bombing at a Cairo church in December that killed nearly 30 people. The violence poses a fresh challenge to President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s government to put down an ISIL-led insurgency in northern Sinai and prevent spillover that at times has reached the mainland.
The group’s local affiliate recently vowed to step up a wave of attacks on the embattled Christian minority, pointing to a shift in tactics toward targeting Christians and their holy sites, which are less protected than the military and police installations that are their usual targets.
Northern Sinai has for years been the epicenter of an insurgency by Islamic militants, and the area’s few Christians have been trickling out. But departures surged after suspected militants again gunned down a Christian man in front of his family two days after Mr Fawzy’s uncle and cousin were killed, stoking panic among Christians.
No militant group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. But the ISIL affiliate, which is based in northern Sinai, released a video vowing to step up attacks against Christians, who it describes as “infidels” empowering the West against Muslims.
Coptic Christians, who make up about 10 per cent of Egypt’s population, have always been a favourite target of Islamic extremists. But attacks on churches have increased since the 2013 military overthrow of an Islamist president. Christians overwhelmingly supported Mr El Sisi, the army chief-turned-president, who led the operation, and extremists have used their support as a pretext to increase attacks against them.
The Christian exodus continued for a fourth day on Sunday, bringing to more than 100 the number of families who have fled El Arish, said Nabil Shukrallah, an official with the city’s Evangelical Church.
Families arrive frightened and in need of supplies, which are being stockpiled at the church from donations from several parishes, he said. The new arrivals are then housed in and around the city, in private homes or in accommodations provided by the government.
“They’re exhausted, with urgent needs for food and children’s clothing,” he said, as one father carried a sick infant to be evacuated by ambulance. “They’re terrified of the violence and brutality.”
Before Egypt’s 2011 Arab Spring uprising, about 5,000 Christians lived in northern Sinai, but that number has since dwindled to fewer than 1,000, according to Christian clergy members and residents. Egypt does not keep official statistics on the number of Christians in specific regions or nationwide.
*Associated Press
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding
Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.
For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Match info
Manchester United 0-0 Crystal Palace
Man of the match: Cheikhou Kouyate (Crystal Palace)
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
