Botroseya Church bombing

Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral bombing
Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in 2011
Location	Cairo, Egypt
Date	11 December 2016 10 a.m. (UTC+02:00)
Attack type	Bombing
Deaths	25
Injured	49

On 11 December 2016, an explosion inside Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral, seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope, in Cairo's Abbasia district killed up to 25 people. No group claimed responsibility. It was the first time this church was ever bombed.

Incident and investigation

The explosion occurred at around 10 a.m. local time in Cairo's Abbassia district. Saint Mark's Cathedral is the most secure Coptic institution in the country, and is constantly patrolled by security personnel. Given that most of the victims were women and children, there was media speculation that the assailant was a woman. MENA news agency reports that an assailant planted a device in a chapel near the church compound's premises. Security officials were unsure about whether the bomber was a male or a female, or whether it was a suicide bombing or a remotely activated device, which they believed would have been a large one. The supposed device allegedly contained 12 kg of TNT. An unnamed church source told a Nile TV reporter that the bomb was thrown inside the cathedral's hall, adjacent to the entrance of the building.

Aftermath

Roads leading to the site were blocked, after large contingents of security forces arrived. They cordoned off the area and started inspecting the church compound and its security cameras. The government placed Cairo International Airport and the city's transport system on alert, a measure which included a state of emergency in Cairo's subway network, tightening security protocols at each station's gates. Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and Cairo's security chief Khaled Abdel Aal visited the scene. Government spokesman Ashraf Sultan described it as a "terrorist" attack. The prosecutor general, Nabil Ahmed Sadeq, ordered the Homeland Security department to carry out an investigation.

The health ministry sent fourteen ambulances to the scene to assist the injured. The casualties were taken to the Demerdash and Dar al-Shifa hospitals.

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the Egyptian President, responded to the attack stating, "Vicious terrorism is being waged against the country's Copts and Muslims. Egypt will emerge stronger and more united from this situation". Sisi also declared a national period of mourning for three days.