Egyptian President, Mufti appeal for calm amid bloody clashes

Egyptian President Dr. Mohammad Morsi strongly denounced on Sunday the ongoing bloody clashes between Muslims and Copts in the vicinity of the St. Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Abbassia district, east Cairo. "It's the responsibility of the state to protect the safety of all lives, Muslims and Christians. I consider any attack against the Cathedral an attack against me in person," he said. President Morsi made the comments in a phone call tonight with Pope Theodoros II, of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, according to a press release by the Presidential Office. He affirmed that he is following up with profound concern the ongoing events and instructed Minister of Interior and the security services to adopt whatever measures to protect the cathedral. President Morsi added that the law enforcement services have been ordered to conduct an immediate probe into the regrettable events and reveal the outcome to the public opinion as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the cabinet convened an emergency meeting tonight after which it issued a statement to condemn the clashes as "irresponsible and individual acts." "Some persons try to foment sedition between the two components of the nation (Muslims and Copts) and undermine the national unity of the homeland," said the statement. "Any attempt to portray the regrettable events as a sectarian strife is doomed to failure; the nation is, and will continue to be, united, coherent and tolerant," it stressed. "A number of Muslims joined their Copt fellows in the funeral at the cathedral to mourn the victims of a gun fight two days ago which testifies to the conference of the social texture and coexistence for which Egypt is known, " the statement pointed out. The government reaffirmed the commitment of the security forces to deal firmly with any attempt to destabilize the country or spread hatred among the citizens. It also offered condolences to the families of the victims, pledging to track down the culprits and bring them to justice. On his part, Grand Mufti Sheikh Dr. Shawqi Allam appealed for "the sincere and wise sons of Egypt - Muslims and Copts," to intervene and nib in the bud the simmering sedition. "Every possible effort must be made to defuse the tension and protect the national texture during this delicate stage," he said. "All Egyptians, Muslim and Christians, must put the national interests above all considerations and join forces against the elements who tamper with the security and stability of the nation," Sheikh Allam underscored. He deemed the ongoing events "an affected crisis" that aims to ignite a major sectarian strife, and urged all people to keep vigilant for such hostile designs. The Ministry of Health said a man, identified as Hanna Ibrahim Twadros, 30, was killed and 66 others were injured in the clashes.