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What do recent attacks mean for future of Egypt's Christians?

Sectarian attacks against Christians in Egypt have increased recently, with the police downplaying these incidents that go largely unreported in the mainstream media.
A woman holds a copy of the Koran and a cross as she shouts slogans during a demonstration against Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi in front of the presidential palace in Cairo December 18, 2012. Opponents of Mursi staged protests in Cairo on Tuesday against an Islamist-backed draft constitution that has divided Egypt but looks set to be approved in the second half of a referendum this weekend. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST RELIGION TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR3BQ8Q

An Orthodox Christian nun from Mar Girgis Monastery in Old Cairo was killed July 5 after reportedly being hit by a stray bullet in an exchange of fire on the Cairo-Alexandria Highway. A man and his son were also injured in what Egyptian media has described as a “revenge attack” by gunmen.

Nearly a week after the tragic incident, little is known about the circumstances of the nun’s death and the identity of the assailants remains undisclosed. To stave off skepticism, local media have said that this was not a sectarian attack and that the nun had not been deliberately targeted. ”She was caught in the crossfire,” the semi-official Al-Ahram reported a day after the attack.

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