CAIRO: Austrian Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger gave his condolences and “deep sorrow” for the death of Egypt's Coptic Christian Pope Shenouda III, who passed away on Saturday. He also offered his condolences to the Coptic community in Austria. The Vice Chancellor visited Pope Shenouda III less than a year ago in Cairo and said he had had a open discussion with him on the situation of the Coptic Church in Egypt and the political changes in the Arab world. “Pope Shenouda impressed me greatly with his strong faith, his optimism and his intellectual agility. The talks I had with him reconfirmed for me the importance of the EU's consistent worldwide commitment to freedom of religion and the protection of religious minorities,” Spindelegger stressed. In Egypt, the country's military junta has given Egypt's Coptic Christian community three days off to mourn the passing of Coptic Pope Shenouda III, who died on Saturday at the age of 88. The Egyptian Coptic community is devastated over his passing, as he was the godfather of Copts for over four decades, advocating for them and mediating with the state to get their rights. They will have Sunday, Monday and Tuesday off, to attend the funeral on Tuesday, and say their final goodbyes. Tens of thousands of Copts arrived early Sunday at the Abbasiya Cathedral, where the Pope's body lies, praying for him and many refused to leave and head back home for the church to be cleaned and prepared for the funeral. Many thousands came from outside of Cairo, to express their love and sadness over his death. The Pope's health had recently deteriorated, and in recent years he took regular medical trips to the United States for treatment. One Egyptian magazine sourced a close associate to the late Pope saying he suffered from lung cancer, although Bikyamasr.com cannot confirm this information. ** Manar Ammar contributed to this report. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/5Mn9Z Tags: Austria, Egypt, featured, Shenouda Section: Egypt, Latest News, Religion
