UPDATE ON THE ATTACK ON PATMOS CENTER

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Christine Tadros
Phone: 202.737.3660
IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Washington DC ( 1/6/04 ) U.S. Copts Association previously reported that on the morning of January 5, 2004 , the Patmos Center came under attack by the Egyptian army. During the assault on the Center, 600 soldiers and two bulldozers attacked the building, partially destroying the fence and setting fire to structures on the premises. The assault culminated when a bus drove towards Bishop Botros and a surrounding crowd of staff members who had come to protect the Center from attack. The Bishop was uninjured, but one staff member was killed and two hospitalized. While army officials began destruction of the encompassing fence, other soldiers threw stones at Center staff members attempting to protect the property. Reports to the U.S. Copts Association reveal that approximately 67 individuals received injuries during the protest. The bus that drove into the group of staff members immediately killed one man. The two other individuals struck by the bus were hospitalized. One of the two has been released from the hospital, while the other remains in critical condition. The army denied involvement with the bus driver. However, reports reveal that the police who stood idly by during the entirety of the incident released the bus driver shortly thereafter, claiming his act to be non-intentional. Egyptian police have once again characteristically remained idle while injustices have been perpetrated against the members of the Coptic community, stated Michael Meunier, president of the U.S. Copts Association. The armys continued attacks on the Center reveal the innate discriminatory attitude held by elements of the Egyptian government, he continued.

The Patmos Center has been attacked repeatedly by the Egyptian army in 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, and in 2003. In previous attacks, sections of the Centers fence were destroyed and several staff members injured. The alleged reason for the attacks has been that, according to a new law, the Centers encompassing fence lies too close to the Suez Canal road. The law stipulates that buildings cannot lie less than 100 meters from the roadway. The Centers walls were built 50 meters from the road. However, the construction of the fence was completed prior to the enactment of this law. Moreover, there are many other buildings, including several mosques that lie only 5-10 meters from the road, that have not been similarly targeted.

The Patmos Center , under the supervision of His Grace Bishop Botros, cares for the mentally and physically handicapped. The Center lies 20 kilometers east of Heliopolis .
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The U.S. Copts Association, founded in 1996 and based in Washington D.C. , advocates for democracy, religious freedom, and human rights in Egypt . The Association represents over 700,000 Egyptian Christians in the United States .