At least41 deadhe left afirein achurchCoptic of Elcairothis Sunday in full celebration of the mass, indicated ecclesiastical authorities.
Thefirecaused by an electrical fault, occurred in thechurchAbu Sifin from the popular neighborhood of Imbaba, in the northwest of the capital, east of the Nile River in Giza Governorate, according to the authorities.
Witnesses described that some people entered thechurchset on fire to try to rescue those trapped, but in the end they gave up due to the intense heat and thesmoke.
"Those who could took children out of the building"Ahmed Reda Baioumy, who lives next to the temple, told AFP.
The Interior Ministry later indicated that the "forensic evidence reveals that thefireIt started in an air conditioning unit on the second floor of thechurch".
Father Farid Fahmy, another neighbor, told AFP that thefireIt was caused by a short circuit.
TheChurchegyptian coptic recorded "41 deadand 14 wounded" citing "sources in the Ministry of Health"in a statement posted on his Facebook account.
President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi stated on his Facebook page that "I mobilized all State services to ensure that all measures are applied" required.
Firefighters later indicated that thefireit was controlled.
Earlier, the Egyptian Ministry of Health had indicated that at least 55 people were hospitalized after thefireand it was "determining the number ofdead".
The popular neighborhood of Imbaba is named after Saint Mercury of Caesarea, revered by the Copts, who are the largest Christian community in the Middle East, with between 10 and 15 million faithful in a country of 103 million inhabitants.
In March 2021, at least 20 people died in thefireof a textile factory in the eastern suburbs of Elcairo.
The Copts have suffered reprisals from Islamists, especially after al Sisi’s 2013 ouster of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi with churches, schools and houses set on fire.
— Sisi presented "your condolences" to the Coptic Pope —
The prosecution had previously announced that it was launching an investigation and sent a team to the scene to establish the causes of thefirewhile the Ministry of Health indicated that it sent several dozen ambulances.
Sisi also announced that "he offered his condolences over the phone" Coptic Pope Tawadros II, who heads the Christian community ofEgyptsince 2012.
Since then, thechurchCoptic Orthodox has shown itself more on the political scene, under the leadership of Tawadros II, a proclaimed supporter of Sisi, the first president ofEgyptwho attends the Coptic Christmas mass every year when his predecessors only sent representatives.
In the great metropolis of Elcairowhere millions of Egyptians live in informal neighborhoods,firesaccidents are frequent.
Egyptwhich is endowed with very old and poorly maintained infrastructure, frequently experiences deadlyfiresin its different provinces.
Although numerous, Copts consider themselves marginalized from many civil service positions and complain of very strict legislation for building churches, which is much more liberal for mosques.
The issue is sensitive and Coptic human rights activist Patrick Zaki recently spent 22 months in detention for "spread false information" in an article where he denounced the violation of the rights of Christians inEgypt.
Sisi recently appointed for the first time in history a Coptic judge to head the Constitutional Court.