Last week four masked men entered a shop and gunned down a young Coptic man in the Egyptian city of Dabaa, Matrouh Governorate. The victim, Rani Raafat, was killed instantly after being shot 22 times. The four attackers burned Raafat’s car before fleeing.
Egyptian media reported that Raafat’s co-worker, Sherif Rashad, sustained a gunshot wound and has been transferred to Alexandria for treatment.
The victim’s father, Raafat Nour, told the media that earlier that day his son had received a call to open the shop early for a goods delivery. “I later received a phone call of the death of my son,” he said. “When I went to the store, I found him dead and lying on the ground, overwhelmed in his own blood.”
The young Christian worked in the veterinary medicine trade and had no known enemies. His relatives suggest the attack was religiously motivated, as Raafat was beaten with a shotgun in an earlier incident in December last year.
Raafat’s father concluded his statement to the press by saying “I only want to apprehend the perpetrators and hold them accountable, and to take the right of my son through the judiciary.”
At this time, the identity of the four masked attackers remains unknown.
Pray for peace over Raafat’s family and community as they mourn his loss.
Pray that authorities would take action and arrest the attackers, and that they would be brought to justice.
Pray for the growing concern of persecution in Egypt. Pray that Egyptian Christians would be strengthened in their faith and emboldened to proclaim the Gospel.
Source: International Christian Concern, Voice of the Martyrs AU.