Egypt’s Coptic Christians have been left reeling after a wave of violence following the military’s toppling of the 
Muslim Brotherhood led Government.
Christians have largely backed the military takeover, as followers of the Brotherhood have consistently targeted Coptic churches and clergy.
The pressure on Egypt’s Christian community, whose roots go back nearly two milennia, has never been greater.
Coptic churches in Minya, located in upper Egypt, where the population is 35-40pc Christian, cancelled Sunday Mass for the first time in 1,600 years, the Times of Israel reports.
At least nine Christians have been killed since last Wednesday, while at least 32 churches and monasteries as well as countless schools, homes and businesses in nine cities around Egypt have been targeted by Islamists.
The attacks served as a reminder that Islamists, while on the defensive in Cairo, maintain influence and the ability to stage violence in provincial strongholds with a large minority of Christians, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Despite the violence, Egypt’s Coptic Christian church on Friday renewed its commitment to the new political order, saying in a statement that it stood by the army and the police in their fight against “the armed violent groups and black terrorism.”
In a statement Saturday, the Coptic Pope Tawadros II, said the Muslim Brotherhood was fomenting sectarian clashes around Egypt. The pope has reportedly been in hiding since rioters began targeting the minority group.
He said supporters of ousted president Mohammed Morsi destroyed the monastery, which includes three churches, one of which is an archaeological site. “One of the extremists wrote on the monastery’s wall, ‘donate [this] to the martyrs’ mosque,’” Lotfy added.
Copts, the largest indigenous Christian minority in the Middle East and North Africa, make up about 10 percent of Egypt’s total population of some 90 million people.
One of the world’s oldest Christian communities, they have generally kept a low-profile, but have become more politically active since Mubarak was ousted and sought to ensure fair treatment in the aftermath. They regularly face violence and discrimination within Egyptian society.
Since Egyptian security forces cleared two pro-Morsi sit-in camps and more than 900 have died in ensuing clashes, Islamists have attacked dozens of Coptic churches as well as homes and businesses owned by the community.
Nearly 58 churches were looted and torched by Islamist rioters since Sunday. The campaign of intimidation appears to be a warning to Christians outside Cairo to stand down from political activism.