CAIRO, May 22 (Reuters) - An Egyptian court sentenced four men on Wednesday to death by hanging for the 2011 killing of a Coptic Christian priest in his apartment in the southern city of Assiut, state news agency MENA reported.

Salafi jihadist groups denied any responsibility for the kidnapping of the seven soldiers being held hostage in Sinai.

A delegation from Salafist Call – Egypt's most powerful Salafist group – is seeking to communicate with the kidnappers of seven security personnel in the Sinai Peninsula, the group's leader said on Tuesday.

The United States Department of State published its annual International Religious Freedom Report for 2012 on Monday. The section of the report regarding Egypt said that while the constitution includes provisions for freedom of religion, it also contains restrictions on these freedoms.

Tamarod, a rebellion campaign whose aim is to collect 15 million signatures on a petition against President Mohamed Mursi, said on Tuesday that the lawsuits against it show that the Muslim Brotherhood fears it.

Until recently, hardline Salafis in Tunisia held on to the belief that the country was a land of da’wa (preaching), not a land of jihad. The Islamist-led government elected after the 2011 revolution had given them the freedom to spread their puritanical brand

Hamas has declared the border area between Egypt and the Gaza Strip a “closed military zone” on Monday as the Sinai hostage crisis enters its fifth day. The closure was announced early on Monday morning, according state-run Al-Ahram, and all known tunnels are said to be closed.

A judge has referred 12 more people to court for their involvement in the violence in the town of Al-Khosous in April that claimed the lives of seven people and was the spark for further sectarian violence.

Cairo Criminal Court has issued a life prison sentence of 25 years and a fine of LE20,000 ($2,800) for Salafist Hazemoon movement member Ahmed Arafa, on possession of firearms without a licence.

Prominent preachers from Egypt's ultra-conservative Salafist Call have again lambasted the "ruling" Muslim Brotherhood for their policies that they say contradict with Islamic teachings.

Samir Sabri, a lawyer, filed a complaint to the Supreme State Security Prosecution against Ahmed Mamhoud Abdullah, also known as Abu Islam, because he threatened Christians in Egypt.

An al Qaeda-linked militant cell detained in Egypt was planning suicide attacks on the French and U.S. embassies, the state news agency MENA reported on Wednesday, quoting investigators.

Islamist group Al-Jamaa Al-Islamiya will focus efforts to end sectarian strife, said leaders and members of the group’s political wing the Building and Development Party (BDP) in a press conference on Wednesday.

A number of Egyptian prosecutors have recommended establishing a specialized committee to investigate crimes of human trafficking, saying there are loops in the existing legislation.

Wasfi Amin Wassef used to buy and sell jewelry from his shop in Cairo’s vast Khan al-Khalili bazaar. Now he mostly buys it.

Perched on a rooftop, his face concealed by a black mask, an Egyptian anarchist lobbed a firebomb at the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in the name of a “second revolution.”

Israeli newspaper Maariv published a video clip on Monday showing an attack by Israeli police on Bishop Anthasius of Ramallah's Egyptian Orthodox Church in Jerusalem during Easter celebrations last week.

Ihab El-Islamboly, an English teacher in Alexandria, was questioned by police on Tuesday for setting a "politicised" exam question that "insulted" President Mohamed Morsi.

Members of the anti-President Morsi 'Rebel' campaign were assaulted in Cairo on Monday afternoon, allegedly by supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Director of the Iranian-Egyptian Chamber of Commerce Sabah Zangana has dismissed Egyptian fears that a spike in tourism collaboration would lead to a spread in Shi'ite influence in Sunni-majority Egypt.

Hazem Salah Abu-Ismail, founder of the Salafist Raya Party, has condemned the anti-Morsi 'Rebel' campaign, claiming it has no legal or constitutional basis.