[UPDATE]: In a social media post, Egypt’s Interior Ministry stated that the attacker has been identified as Ibrahim Ismail Ismail Mustafa, and that Mustafa has participated in multiple prior attacks. According to the social media post, the church shooting “resulted in the death of a police secretary and [six] citizens,” and the shop shooting resulted “in the death of two citizens …”
On Friday, a gunman opened fire outside the Coptic Christian Church of the Martyr Marmina in Helwan, Egypt.
As of publication, some of the details are muddled. We are receiving varying reports regarding the assailant(s), the number of casualties, and other key information.
According to various sources who spoke with CNN, two men riding a motorcycle (one or both of whom were armed) approached the church after worship had ended. Eight churchgoers and one police officer were shot and killed, and at least five others were wounded:
Badr Mohamed Badr, a fruit seller, witnessed the attack from his stall and said he saw a shooter on a motorcycle fire a gun at a police officer. He said he saw two attackers, one watching the road and the other firing a machine gun.
CNN reports that “one suspected assailant was arrested with a machine gun, ammunition and a bomb that he had planned to use in the church, the Interior Ministry told state media.” According to a Health Ministry spokesman, “a second attacker was shot dead by Egyptian security forces.”
The Associated Press tells the story a bit differently, mentioning only one assailant. The man, who had “opened fire at a nearby store” prior to attacking the church, was either wearing, or had in his possession, an improvised explosive device (IED). He was reportedly arrested and identified as Ibrahim Ismail Mostafa.
The Guardian, relaying information from alleged inside sources at the Interior Ministry, claims that there were indeed two men, one of whom was killed by security forces. The second man was allegedly arrested as he attempted to flee. One of the sources also claimed “explosive experts dismantled two IEDs near the church.”
The New York Times reports: “Egyptian state media also reported the death of a gunman, and added that another assailant — a gunman who also had a homemade bomb with him — was arrested later in the day.”
It’s unclear at this time if the shootings at the shop and the church are related. According to The Guardian, the shop was Christian-owned, and two men were killed in that attack — brothers Romani and Attia Shaker.
The Interior Ministry allegedly claims that one man was responsible for both attacks, but the Health Ministry seems to be saying there were two assailants.
The most important information, and what appears to be consistent across all reports, is that a Coptic church and business were the targets of an attack, which resulted in the deaths of at least nine innocent people, and the injury of at least five others.