An Egyptian man has been sentenced to death for the shooting and killing of seven people outside a church on Coptic Christmas Eve, the Daily News Egypt reported on Monday.
Mohamed Ahmed Mohamed Hassan, also known as "Hammam El-Kamouny," was sentenced to death for shooting and killing six Coptic Christians and one Muslim in Naga Hammadi last year. It happened on the Coptic Christmas Eve, which fell on January 6.
The defendant was charged along with two other men of killing six Copts and one Muslim, as well as injuring nine others during a drive-by shooting in front of the Naga Hammadi Archbishopric.
The other two men accused of the massacre are awaiting sentencing and both defendants, Korashi Abol-Haggag Mohamed and Hendawy Mohamed Sayed Hassan, are expected to be sentenced to death as well.
Tight security measures were taken inside the courtroom due to the case having stirred anger within Egypt's Coptic community. The severity of the penalty was decided due to the viciousness of the crime.
The verdict was received with cheers by the Copts as violence had escalated following the New Year's Eve bombing that left 23 people dead and more than 90 injured outside a church in Alexandria.
The blast took place outside the church as worshipers were leaving the New Year's mass in the early hours of January 1st this year. The Ministry of Interior later informed that the terror attack was perpetrated by a suicide bomber.
The Muslim Brotherhood also strongly condemned the crime. The officially banned opposition group stated that this crime is not accepted by any religion, and that Islam calls for protecting the rights of non-Muslims and Muslims alike.
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