Suspects in Egypt church killing face trial

The suspects in a drive-by shooting that killed seven people outside an Egyptian church on Coptic Christmas Eve are to be tried in an emergency state security court.

Prosecutor General Abdel-Maguid Mahmoud referred the three suspects to trial on murder charges.

The January 6 attack killed six Copts and one Muslim in the southern town of Nag Hamadi.

The shooting shocked Egypt’s Coptic minority and underscored the government’s failure to address chronic sectarian strains in a society where religious radicalism is gaining ground.

The Interior Ministry called the shooting a revenge attack for the alleged November rape of a 12-year-old Muslim girl by a Christian man.

Egypt’s emergency courts normally handle cases involving terrorism.