CAIRO: Fears of renewed sectarian strife in Egypt sprouted on Tuesday after skirmishes and clashes took place in al-Badreman village in Minya governorate south of Cairo. Police were forced to intervene after a group of Christians removed the dome of St. George Church in the city in order to put up a larger one and install a new bell for the expansion of the church's premises. Some Muslims in the area objected to the construction work, which led to an altercation between the two groups and resulted in three people being injured, including a 10-year-old Muslim boy, local reports said. Scores of security forces were called in, immediately flowing into the area and creating a security cordon on the situation in an effort to control the rising tension and prevent widespread clashes from erupting. For his part, the pastor of the church told Egyptian newspaper al-Youm al-Saba'a that the church had the approval of the security services to remove the old dome and to build a new one, “but the construction workers were surprised by a person accompanied by two others trying to stop them and abused them.” He alleged that the local mayor had called in the intervention of security forces after the initial verbal fight broke out. While a number of the village residents stressed that the real reason behind the clashes was the expansion of the fence around the church, which is adjacent to a local resident's house. They said that the clashes erupted when Muslims attempted to prevent the construction workers from continuing their work, and this led to clashes between the two groups with knives, bricks and stones. Christians groups have long called on the government to pass a new houses of worship law that would enable their minority community to build and erect new churches easier. They have said that much of the sectarian strife in Egypt in recent years has been due to the government's inability to pass the new law and “give Christians the right to worship in the place of their choosing.” Security forces have, since Tuesday, stationed themselves at the church and surrounded the area in an effort to control the situation. They have arrested groups of people, Christians and Muslims. **reporting by Mohamed Abdel Salam BM
