CAIRO: Leaders of the Coptic Orthodox Church described their meeting with Military Chief of Staff Sami Anan Wednesday as “positive.” Representing Pope Shenouda II, five church leaders met Anan, also member of the ruling military council, to discuss the crackdown on the Maspero protest on Oct. 9 that left 27 dead and over 300 injured. The mainly Coptic protest was against an earlier attack on the Marinab Church in the southern governorate of Aswan. The church representatives, who were briefing the Pope about the meeting by press time, refused to give more details, saying the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces would issue a statement shortly. But Bishop Morqos of Shubra El-Kheima and head of the media committee of the Holy Synod told Daily News Egypt the meeting was “positive.” Church sources said the meeting also discussed the unified law for building houses of worship and the issue of unlicensed churches operating on a security clearance. The Coptic Church had compiled a list of these churches and presented it to the SCAF and Cabinet.
