CAIRO— An explosion ripped through Cairo’s Coptic Christian cathedral complex on Sunday, killing at least 20 people and injuring 35, Egypt’s health ministry said.
It was unclear whether a bomb triggered the blast. There were no immediate claims of responsibility.
A Coptic church spokesman told local media that the explosion took place inside the 100-year-old Botrosiya church, which is located inside the St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Cairo’s Abbasia enclave.
Some reports from local newspapers and TV networks suggested that a bomb was placed inside a handbag in a section of the church designated for female worshippers. A large proportion of the victims are women, according to local reports.
Sunday’s violence came less than 48 hours after a bomb killed six police officers and injured another three on Friday on a road leading to Egypt’s famed Great Pyramids complex.
Egypt’s Orthodox Coptic Christian community, who make up 10 percent of the population, have long felt discrimination at the hands of the country’s Muslims. Attacks on Christians have intensified since the 2011 populist revolts that ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt’s Islamic State branch, located in the restive northern Sinai Peninsula, have claimed responsibility for many attacks, particularly ones targeting soldiers and officials in recent months.