UPDATE - 41 dead in fire at Egyptian church west of Cairo
Cause of fire not yet clear
UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS
By Ibrahim al-Ghazen
ANKARA (AA) – At least 41 people were killed and 14 others injured in a fire that erupted at an Egyptian church west of Cairo early Sunday, the Coptic Church said.
The fire broke out in Abu Sefein Church in the Greater Cairo district of Imbaba as a service was underway, the state news agency MENA reported.
The Coptic Church reported the death toll, citing Health Ministry officials.
The cause of the fire is not yet clear.
Health Ministry spokesperson Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar said 30 ambulances were dispatched to the scene to transfer the victims to nearby hospitals.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi extended condolences during a phone call with Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and head of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
Sisi said all state institutions are providing the required support to contain the effects of the tragic incident, his spokesman Bassam Rady said.
Coptic Christians make up around 15 percent of Egypt’s 100 million population, according to unofficial estimates.
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