Father Poulos Halim, Spokesman of the Coptic Church, praised the heroic action of the men of the Interior Ministry Police, and the raid on Cairo terrorist hideout. Halim mourned the death of Houfi and wished the policemen injured in the raid a speedy recovery. The Coptic Egyptian Orthodox Church, headed by His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, had issued a statmetn to mourn the martyr Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Fawzi Al-Hofy, who was martyred while doing his duty towards his homeland along with anti-terrorist forces breaking into a terrorist den in the Amiriya district in Cairo.

Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and the Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, celebrates the Mass of Maundy Thursday at the Monastery of St. Bishoy in Wadi Al-Natrun with a limited number of monks and bishops. The mass prayers of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday will be broadcast directly on the church channels and the official website of the church.

Coptic Churches mourned policemen killed in exchanging fire with terrorist fighters near the al-Amireya neighborhood in Cairo who were creating bombs in their hideout location. 3 policemen were killed in the attack. The terrorist elements were planning to carry out bomb attacks against churches on Easter. Church leaders offered their sincere condolences to families of the martyrs and for the Egyptian people.

The Evangelical Community in Egypt holds its official celebration on the occasion of the glorious Resurrection feast next Saturday, April 18, without the participation of the congregation. Dr. Rev. Andrea Zaki, head of the community, said that they decided to limit the celebration to a very few number of the participants and to prevent the congregation from attending in order to prevent the spread of the Corona virus and protect the people.

Dialogue of Culture Centre organisers awareness campaign in Assiut in cooperation with the family house where personal hygene tools and sanitzers were distributed as well as free food. The campaign aimed at raising awareness about the Corona virus and how to avoid the infection by all means.

Nabila Makram, Egypt s Minster of Immigration thanked Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of St. Mark See for offering support to the Egyptians stranded in Kenya amid the outbreak of COVID-19. In a statement, the Ministry of Immigration said the pope contacted the Egyptian Church in Kenya to host the stranded Egyptians after the suspension of flights. The church responded to the pope s request and offered financial support to the stranded Egyptians and gave them contacts of people who can help them until the exceptional flights resume anew, the statement added. The Church s move was part of Let s Support Each Other campaign, which was launched earlier by the government, to unify all the efforts exerted by all the organizations and individuals in order to help the stranded Egyptian expats and travelers.

Bishop Athanasious of Beni Mazar diocese mourned the departure of Father Mankerios Yusuf, priest of the Church of the Virgin at Bani Mazar, in Minya. The funeral was attended by family members of the priest and non of the congregation was allowed to attend following new instructions to face the spread of Corona virus.

For the first time in centuries, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem said that traditional celebration of Palm Sunday was canceled due to the Coronavirus. The celebration consists of marches roam the city s streets and antique alleys during the Holy week, which is considered an essential part of the Easter celebrations and pilgrimage rituals.

The Egyptian government announced today to legalize 74 churches and service buildings in Egypt. This raises the total number of legalized churches and service buildings to 1568 out of 5540 requests submitted to the Committee.

The number of total recorded cases of Corona virus in the USA reached 75 thousand, which has become more than what was recorded in Italy. US President Donald Trump announced emergency case in New York, Texas and Florida due to the Coronavirus, where more than one 1000 people died due to the virus.

After all churches in America were shut down due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus, Father Felopater Aziz, priest of the Coptic diocese in New York, moved the altar of the church to his home, where he celebrates daily masses. The priest broadcasts the daily masses on social media to get in touch with the congregation praying for God to save the world from the epidemic.

Father Paulos Halim, spokesman for the Coptic Orthodox Church, invited the people to stay at home to prevent the spread of the epidemic and protect their families and country. He added the church is praying that the crisis come to an end and believe that it works for the good and will teach people to humble before God.

The Coptic Diocese of New York and the Pontifical headquarters in North America issued a statement to warn the Coptic people about the seriousness of the Corona virus assuring that some Coptic priests and members of the church were tested positive for the virus. Statement added that the situation is very serious and that the church is facing unprecedented situation in the modern history. It is worth mentioning that Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church announced it is shutting down all churches nationwide and suspended all its services due to Coronavirus in order to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

In an attempt to break the cycle of the epidemic, Bisho Ermia advised the Coptic people to stay at home and avoid going out as possible due to Coronavirus. This comes as the Coptic church is celebrating the Great Lent, during which the people fast and celebrate daily Holy Masses.

Bishop Bemen of Naqada and Qus returned home after a medical trip to the United States of America. He was diagnosed with angina last January and underwent medical surgery in the heart.

In a painful scene that did not happen In history, a priest of an Italian church stood alone in the church praying without the congregation after the churches were closed and the curfew imposed on the city due to the Coronavirus. The priest found no way but to ask the people of the church to send him their personal pictures to put them in their seats and pray for them.

Family of the Coptic minor girl Samira Khalaf Ibrahim demanded the police to investigate the disappearance of their daughter. The 17 years old girl has went to a private class in her city in Kafr el-Sheikh before her phone was closed and she never returned home.

The Monastery of St. Bishoy in Wadil Natron announced that the late bishop Srabamon is to be buried left a will to be buried under the legs of his teacher Pope Shenouda III. The monastery has prepared a special shrine for its bishop according to his will.

After a sectarian clashes was at hand due to a shared topic on Facebook by a Coptic man who works abroad, which was considered inappropriate and offensive. Wise clergy in Gowair village in Mallawy decided to visit houses of the Muslims and Christians in the village and apologized for the inappropriate action. Friday prayer speeches addressed the matter as well and called for peace and coexistence.

A group of Coptic activists in the United States of America established the American Coptic Council in New York, with the official presence of the Egyptian embassy, parliamentarians, and a number of Coptic leaders in America. The council aims to support Egypt and provide a diverse vision on a number of issues related to the economy, citizenship, and representation of Egypt abroad by providing a realistic picture of Egypt after the June 30 revolution. The Council was established by Dr. Joseph Ibrahim, Dr. Ashraf Ashamallah, Irene Bakhit and Michael Lyon.

Bishops Angelos of Shubra and Gabriel of Austria visited the Ambassador of Egypt in Austria Omar Amer to offer condolences on the death of former president Hosni Mubarak. A military funeral was held to the former president who was leader of the Air forces during the war on 1973 and the state of general mourning was declared in Egypt for 3 days.