The two church bombings that killed dozens in Egypt on Palm Sunday were aimed at targeting unity among Muslims and Christians in the most populous Arab nation, the Coptic Patriarch, Tawadros II said yesterday.
Tawadros was speaking ahead of the visit by Pope Francis to Egypt on Friday and referring to the suicide bombers from the so-called Islamic State group who attacked two churches in the cities of Tanta and Alexandria on April 9, killing 45 people.
The attacks 'were not aimed at Copts only but at the heart of Egypt... They aimed at breaking the unity of Egyptians,' Tawadros told a news conference in Kuwait City.
'Unity among Egyptians has existed for the past 14 centuries and these attacks will not affect the Egyptian people,' he said.
The comments come after Pope Francis issued a video message to the people of Egypt, saying that the war-torn world needs 'peace, love and mercy'.
The Pope's message came before he is scheduled to fly to Cairo for a two-day pastoral trip during which he will celebrate Mass, participate in a conference for peace, meet with clergy, encourage the small Egyptian Christian community in their faith and promote inter-religious dialogue in the predominantly Muslim nation.
One of the highlights of the visit will be a meeting between the Pope and Tawadros.
As The Tablet reports this week: 'The main focus of Francis' short trip will be dialogue and diplomacy, a moment where a global Christian leader travels to the cradle of civilisation and a city known as "the mother of the world."
'More than anything he says, the Pope's presence and appeals for peace in such an important Islamic country will provide a powerful counter-narrative to the idea that religions are the cause of violence or that Islam and Christianity are involved in a clash of civilisations.'
Because of the state of emergency in the country declared by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi following the bombings, security will be extremely tight throughout the Pope's visit. But the Vatican has made it clear that the Pope will not use a bulletproof vehicle.
Copts, who make up about one tenth of Egypt's population of more than 92 million, appear to be increasingly targeted by Islamist terrorists.
In December, an ISIS suicide bomber struck a church in Cairo, killing 29 people.
Tawadros, on his first visit to Kuwait which is populated by a large Coptic community, was met by the Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and top officials.
Egyptian police last week arrested Ali Mahmoud Mohamed Hassan, one of 19 suspects whose names were made public by police after the Palm Sunday attacks.
