Cairo (AsiaNews) - "Egyptian Christians and Muslims are united to change the country, instead the Muslim Brotherhood are an international movement that is not aiming for the good of Egypt. After his election Mohammed Morsi promised to solve the Palestinian issue, yielding 40% of the Sinai Peninsula to Hamas and to create a new state for the people of Gaza and the West Bank. All at the expense of the Egyptians" says Msgr. Yohanna Golta, Catholic Coptic bishop of Andropoli and auxiliary bishop of Alexandria. The prelate describes the dramatic climate of violence that pervades Egypt and lays the blame at the doorstep of all those countries who are hiding from the facts, ignoring the views of millions of Egyptians and reducing the conflict to a political struggle between the military and Muslim Brotherhood.
"The organization of the
Muslim Brotherhood has a plan to build an Islamic caliphate - says Msgr. Golta
- this program is international and includes Turkey, Qatar, Egypt and other
Muslim states." For
the prelate the West is more interested in solving the issue of Israeli
democracy than the plight and desires of the Egyptians. "The
Egyptian people, especially young people - he adds - reject this plan. A revolution
took place on 30 June in order to avoid the destruction of our country and the
army and for the first time the police sided with the people. Everyone, women,
men, seniors, children, imams and Christian priests marched together without
fighting. I was among the protesters and I witnessed this atmosphere of
friendship and unity". The
choosing instead to focus in on the conflict over the legitimacy of the Mohammed
Morsi government. "Peace
in Israel and Palestine - he adds - suits the West, which is why the U.S.
refuses our policies in order to achieve its goal: bring the Islamists back to
power."
Bishop
Golta argues that the attack on the Christian Churches had been prepared for a
long time and is part of a premeditated plan. "In
recent weeks - he says - the extremists have destroyed churches, homes,
museums, and staged clashes with the police. This is to show the world that the
country is in chaos and push for Western countries to intervene in Egypt, and
force the population to accept the government of Mohammed Morsi.
"
However,
according to the bishop who has experienced the events of recent weeks first
hand, the truth does not correspond to the news reported by international media.
"The
price of this chaos in addition to hundreds of deaths in clashes between
Islamists and the army - he explains - are over
40 churches burned and 500 Christian homes deliberately destroyed." Bishop
Golta criticises those who foment the fable of sectarian strife, "Muslims
are defending the Copts, organizing security cordons around the churches (see
photo), houses, shops. A small minority is instigating the clash and do not represent
Egypt. The U.S. and European Union do not want to see the reality, but only
what's important to them, giving credence to lies and trampling on the aspirations
of the Egyptian people. " (S.C.)