Nineteen Islamist militants accused of carrying out a deadly attack on Christians in Egypt have been killed by police, the interior ministry says.
They died in a shoot-out after police pursued “fugitive terrorist elements” into the desert area west of Minya province, the statement said.
Seven Coptic Christians were killed in an attack on two buses near a monastery in Minya on Friday.
The Islamic State (IS) group has said it carried out the attack.
Image copyrightREUTERS
Image captionSeven people were killed in the attack on Coptic Christians in Minya
The ministry said security forces had exchanged fire with “terrorist elements” they were pursuing, although it did not say exactly when the firefight happened.
Friday’s attack near the Monastery of St Samuel the Confessor in Minya also left at least seven other people wounded, including children, according to reports.
Funerals were held for the victims on Friday and Saturday, with many mourners expressing their anger.
“What do these terrorists want? Do they want us to hate Muslims?” said Michel, 23, who lost a neighbour in the attack.
One at the same spot left 28 dead in May 2017.
Who are the Coptic Christians?
The Coptic Orthodox Church is the main Christian Church in Egypt. While most Copts live there, the church has about a million members outside the country.
The Coptic Church separated from other Christian denominations at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, in a dispute over the human and divine nature of Jesus Christ.
The current Coptic Pope, Tawadros II, stepped away from social media last month by closing his official Facebook page.