Bombs Kill Dozens Of Christians On Palm Sunday In Egypt, ISIS Claims Responsibility

Matt Vespa

Two churches were targeted by bombs in Egypt, where dozens were killed celebrating Palm Sunday (via CNN):

Bombs targeted two Coptic churches in Egypt as the Christian faithful observed Palm Sunday, one of the most important days on the religion's calendar.

A powerful blast rippled through a Palm Sunday service at a Coptic Christian church in the northern Egypian city of Tanta, killing 25 people and wounding 60 others, state TV reported. The explosive device at St. George's Coptic church in Tanta was planted under a seat in the church, where it detonated in the main prayer hall, it said.

At least 11 people were killed and 35 others wounded in a suicide bomb attack outside Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Alexandria, according to two state-news outlets. Egyptian state media also reports that the head of Egypt's Coptic Church Pope Tawadros II was inside the Church when the blast happened. He was not injured.

At the time, no one claimed responsibility, but The Washington Post recently reported that it was the work of ISIS:

The Islamic State claimed repsonsibility for both bombings through the Amaq news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamist militant group. Egypt’s Christian minority, who make roughly 10 percent of the population, have increasingly been targeted by Islamist extremists.

The first blast in Tanta, 80 miles north of the capital, Cairo, unfolded around 9.30 a.m., during a Palm Sunday service at St. George’s Church. The bomb, police said, was planted in the pews of the church.

Less than three hours later, a second blast erupted near Saint Mark’s Church in the northern city of Alexandria.