Two weeks after the New Year's Eve attack on the Two Saints Church in Alexandria and there is no end in sight to the investigations, reports Mohamed Abdel-Baky The perpetrators of the attack on the Two Saints Church have yet to be identified. No one has claimed responsibility for the deadly attack that killed 21 and injured a hundred more. Two reports are expected to be submitted to the prosecutor-general by the beginning of next week, one prepared by forensic experts affiliated to the Ministry of Justice, the second by the Ministry of Interior's Department of Criminal Evidence. On Monday investigators in Alexandria finished questioning 85 witnesses, including those injured in the attack and the priest of the Two Saints Church, Father Maqar Fawzi. No one had witnessed the actual blast. The investigation has focussed on apartment rentals and hotel occupancy in the immediate vicinity of the bombing over the last three months, as well as examining the whereabouts of defendants in other cases to determine whether they were involved in the attack. One lead, centring on a man who had rented an apartment in the town of Dekheila, west of Alexandria, and who frequented a coffee shop and barber close to the bomb attack, has since been discounted. The investigation has also taken in a number of young Alexandrian bloggers on the social networking website Facebook who are reported to have predicted a catastrophe at the beginning of the year. Security officials say that the manner in which the crime scene was contaminated has made it almost impossible to glean clues from the site of the bombing. There have been reports that investigators only gained access to the scene at 3am because of the actions of angry Copts. Fire engines had also flooded the site of the explosion with water as they attempted to douse the flames caused by the explosion. The investigation was further delayed by the discovery of human remains on the roof of the mosque opposite the church eight days after the attack. They are currently being examined by forensic experts who believe they could belong to the bomber. The Ministry of Interior has distributed a portrait to the media reconstructed from remains found at the site of the blast. Surgeons were consulted to try to reconstruct the features of the face, thought to belong to a man in his 20s. The drawing is currently being used by Egypt's immigration authorities and Interpol in the hope it might match with a recent entrant to the country. The head of Egypt's forensic medical authority, Ahmed El-Sebaai, says the authority had nothing to do with the sketch of the suspect released by the Ministry of Interior. He questions the usefulness of such a portrait, pointing out that to be accurate such a reconstruction requires an intact skull. The prosecutor office has also distanced itself from the drawing. "The prosecution office has no information about the photo of the suspected perpetrator published in the media," said a statement released by Alexandria's Attorney- General Yasser El-Refaai. Forensic evidence seems to indicate that the bomber may have detonated the explosive device too early. They may not have intended to kill themselves, or else wanted to enter the crowded church where the number of casualties would have been far greater. An electronic circuit and debris collected from the crime scene suggests that the bomber used a school or travel bag loaded with 20-25kg of high explosives, not a belt packed with between 10-15kg of TNT as police previously said. Life in the immediate vicinity of the attack is slowly returning to normal. Disturbances have all but stopped as demonstrators responded to calls by both Pope Shenouda III and the government to halt their protests. The street in front of the church is now open to the public. The government has allocated LE100 million for the purchase and installation of surveillance cameras across Alexandria and has increased security around churches, particularly during religious feasts. "Cameras will monitor all of the city's access points, public squares and landmarks," said Amin Radi, chairman of parliament's Defence and National Security Committee.
