Izbet Bushra is a small village in the governorate of Beni Suef, approximately 140 kilometers south of Cairo. The village has Muslim majority of roughly 60%. While the village has had a mosque for the past twenty years, Christians conducted prayer services in local homes.
Permits for church building are difficult to obtain in Egypt. For this reasons the Christians of Izbet Bushra decided to mislead local officials and their Muslim neighbours by declaring the new building to be a factory. Tensions began rise after the discovery of the building's purpose, leading to a violent conflict.
CAWU Intern and three villagers of Izbet Bushra
The ZIVIC project has produced a comprehensive report of this issue, culling information from multiple sources. It has also studied area religious relations through a survey of priests, conducted site visits, and produced media analysis of Egyptian reporting, both domestic and foreign. Links to these reports are presented below:
Osama al- Ghazoly interviewing
Muslim and Christian leaders in Izbet Bushra
Reports
Visits