Egyptians gather by debris resulting from a blast which struck outside the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria as worshippers attended Palm Sunday mass earlier on April 9, 2017. AFP
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced a three-month state of emergency following twin church bombings by the Islamic State group that killed dozens on Palm听Sunday, the deadliest attacks on the minority in recent memory.
The attacks in the Nile Delta cities of Tanta and Alexandria followed a Cairo church bombing in December and came weeks before a planned visit by Catholic Pope Francis intended to show support for Egypt鈥檚 Christian minority.
Sisi declared the 鈥渢hree-month鈥� state of emergency, which he must present to parliament within a week, during a defiant speech warning that the war against the jihadists 鈥渨ill be long and painful.鈥�
The first bombing at the Mar Girgis church in Tanta city north of Cairo killed 27 people, the health ministry said.
Emergency services had scrambled to the scene when another blast rocked St Mark鈥檚 church in Alexandria where Coptic Pope Tawadros II had been leading a Palm听Sunday听service.
Seventeen people including at least four police officers were killed in that attack, which the interior ministry said was caused by a suicide bomber who blew himself up when prevented from entering the church.
The ministry said Tawadros was unharmed, and a church official said he left before the explosion.
The private CBC Extra channel aired footage of the Alexandria blast, with CCTV showing what appeared to be the church entrance engulfed in flame and flying concrete moments after a guard turned a man away.
Eyewitnesses said a police officer detected the bomber before he blew himself up.
At least 78 people were wounded in Tanta and 40 in Alexandria, the health ministry said.
Egyptian officials denounced the violence as an attempt to sow divisions, and Francis sent his 鈥渄eep condolences鈥� to Tawadros.
IS claimed two Egyptian suicide bombers carried out both attacks and threatened further attacks in a statement published on social media.
After the bombings, Sisi ordered military deployments to guard 鈥渧ital and important infrastructure鈥�, his office said.
State television reported that the interior minister sacked the provincial head of security and replaced him after the attack.
鈥淚 heard the blast and came running. I found people torn up鈥� some people, only half of their bodies remained,鈥� Nabil Nader, who lives in front of the Tanta church, said.
At St Mark鈥檚 in Alexandria, at night the bodies were brought in wooden coffins decorated with golden crosses to the church yard where hundreds of sad and angry Copts gathered and a priest was saying prayers.
A Muslim funeral was also held in El Behira province for one of the four policemen killed in the St Mark鈥檚 attack.
Worshippers had been celebrating Palm听Sunday, one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar, marking Jesus鈥檚 triumphant entrance to Jerusalem.
Egypt had been ruled under emergency law 鈥� which allows police expanded powers of arrest and surveillance 鈥� for decades before 2012.
Pope prays for victims
Pope Francis, who is due in Cairo on听April 28-29, offered prayers for the victims.
鈥淟et us pray for the victims of the attack unfortunately carried out today,鈥� he said.
鈥淢ay the Lord convert the heart of those who sow terror, violence and death and also the heart of those who make weapons and trade in them.鈥�
Copts, who make up about one tenth of Egypt鈥檚 population of more than 92 million and who celebrate Easter next weekend, have been targeted by several attacks in recent months.
Jihadists and Islamists accuse Copts of supporting the military overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, which ushered in a deadly crackdown on his supporters.
In December, a suicide bombing claimed by IS killed 29 worshippers in a Cairo church.
The group later released a video threatening Egypt鈥檚 Christians with more attacks.
A spate of jihadist-linked attacks in the restive Sinai Peninsula, including the murder of a Copt in the city of El Arish, led some Coptic families to flee.
US President Donald Trump led international condemnation of听Sunday鈥檚听attacks.
鈥淪o sad to hear of the terrorist attack in Egypt. US strongly condemns. I have great confidence that President Al Sisi will handle situation properly,鈥� he tweeted.
UN chief Antonio Guterres expressed the hope that the perpetrators will be swiftly brought to justice after a Security Council statement condemned the bombings as 鈥渉einous鈥� and 鈥渃owardly.鈥�
String of attacks
The Cairo-based Al-Azhar, an influential Sunni Muslim authority, said the attacks aimed to 鈥渄estabilise security and鈥� the unity of Egyptians鈥�.
Egypt鈥檚 Copts have endured successive attacks since Morsi鈥檚 ouster in July 2013.
More than 40 churches were targeted nationwide in the two weeks after the deadly dispersal by security forces of two pro-Morsi protest camps in Cairo on听August 14听that year, Human Rights Watch said.
Sisi, who as then army chief helped remove Morsi, has defended his security forces and accused jihadists of attacking Copts in order to divide the country.
In October 2011, almost 30 people 鈥� mostly Coptic Christians 鈥� were killed outside the state television building in Cairo after the army charged at protesters denouncing the torching of a church in southern Egypt.
A few months earlier, the unclaimed New Year鈥檚 Day bombing of a Coptic church killed more than 20 people in second city Alexandria./rga
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