Calm has returned to the village. People have started going out of their houses for the necessities of their everyday lives. Steps are counted, for police forces are everywhere. Instructions are clear: "No negligence with any attempt to light fires again."
The execution of the prescription for getting out of the crisis has started. The first step is the gathering of everybody round the same table, face-to-face. For the first time, everybody opened their hearts, talking, speaking of their pains and problems with the other. Accusations were transformed bit-by-bit into admonition. At the same time, the team of the Supreme State Security Prosecution is getting on with its investigations twenty-four hours a day to reach the wicked hands that lit the fire of conflicts.
Al-Akhbar went to Al-Koshh and met with its inhabitants and witnessed, in spite of pain and agony, pictures of humanity in many of its inhabitants.
Public officials are exerting all their efforts and confirming that they are on the road of reconciliation between all sides.
Fifty-five kilometers from Al-Koshh, the roads were still closed for passers and cars going to Dar Al-Salam and Al-Koshh. Along the road, police patrols did not stop passing [us].
In Dar Al-Salam that witnessed a number of violent incidents and destruction after the rumors intended to incite the incidents spread, life has gone back to normal. Shops were opened and markets crowded before feasts.
The intensive security patrols supported by armored cars only monitored the situation without any interference in the movements of citizens.
Owners of the places that were destroyed started mending their places after the inspection of the state prosecution. Christians and Muslims are helping their neighbors in their work.
Although several days have passed, the inhabitants of the city are still in total shock over what happened between them. Suddenly, they found themselves in a flood of news that turned out later to be only false rumors. They found out that all the places that the rumor spreaders said were destroyed were totally safe. They were not burned or destroyed as it was said about the Azhar girls’ institute or churches. Moreover, not a single girl was absent from her family’s home in spite of the fake kidnapping rumors.
With the spread of each rumor, some were filled with rage and the desire for revenge. In the end, they found out that they have given their thoughts to the devil. Nevertheless, the criminal must pay the price. Prosecution ordered twenty-eight of those caught while looting or harming others or spreading rumors to be detained.
In the lawyers syndicate in the city, I witnessed the meeting that was held in it. It was an impromptu meeting, but was [soon] transformed into a hot conference cursing what has happened. Everybody circled around their colleague Gamal Ragheb, the lawyer whose house was affected by the wicked hands. The victim lawyer stood saying: "I’ll leave those who have burnt us all, Muslims and Christians, with their wicked rumors to God. It is true that I am hurt and I am a victim, but I am the victim of rabble. Believe me, there is not [religious] conflict at all. I am a lawyer, and all the customers of my office are Muslims. They are the ones who stood beside me after hearing what has happened to me." The lawyer adds saying, "I lived the battle of the rumors. I heard and saw myself how some people were screaming that Christians had burned the Azhar institution and kidnapped the girls. Others came to Christians telling them to go for revenge because of their church that was burned, and the people in it beaten. That was lying. I went there and there and found that nobody had approached the institute or the church. Frankly, we need deep solutions to stop evil from getting back into souls." All the lawyers spoke, among whom is Mohammed Al-Tobgy, who said: "We are all with you Gamal. Your words are right. We do not have any differences. My father was breastfed by his Christian neighbor, from a Christian mother."
The Source of the Spark:
We left Dar Al-Salam with difficulty because of the crowding of its inhabitants who went out after they felt safe. Eight kilometers away, we reached the source of the spark that lit the flames of the incidents, to Al-Koshh; the village that they are trying to use to defame Egypt’s reputation abroad.
Awful quietness covers the village. There are a number of the inhabitants, each carrying a plastic bag with the necessities of their families, especially foodstuff. They come from nearby villages after things have gone quiet. Peasants are moving in their fields. Inhabitants are seeing to their daily needs.
Inside the village, it was clear that it had been transformed into a military barracks: Police forces standing on every corner; soldiers atop armored and patrol cars with their weapons ready. Some patrol cars are moving on special assignments, executing the decisions of the prosecution to seize those who were accused of inciting the incidents. For the first time, houses were opened. Some inhabitants were sitting in front of doors under the sun. some were moving cautiously to visit their relatives or neighbors, and check on anything they need.
Maurice Helmy Shaker, owner of a car workshop said that his workshop was looted. The looting included eight thousand pounds that were an installment for a bank. He said that he was surprised concerning what has happened, especially since his relationships with all his neighbors - without differentiation - was good. He does not know who those were who have stolen from him.
He was sitting in front of his house with his children and brothers. Romany Selim Salem says: "Frankly, what has happened is a shame on all of us. The problem happened when people believed rumors. They forget that we have love and warm relations. Believe me, during the incidents, me and Muslim neighbors were worried about each other. I will not tell fancy stories, but the facts. What has happened is that my neighbor Mahmoud Zeiyad Mohammadein who kept coming to our door felt that we were scared and went to his field to get some clover for the cattle and flour without anybody asking him."
Maurice, the neighbor of Romany comments on the rumors saying: "It was hysterical. Can you believe that someone came to warn us not to drink tap water because it was poisoned by Muslims? And we stopped drinking. Our Muslim neighbors stopped drinking as well because someone told them that Christians have poisoned the water. We paid the price for the rumor by drinking contaminated water from pumps, afraid of each other."
Hanna Selim, a grocer, says: "The best solution for solving the problem and calming spirits is firmly dealing with anyone who participated in raising conflicts."
Humanitarian stories between people continue. Many Muslims hurried to rescue their Christian brothers and offered them security and food during the incidents. Some of them saved their neighbors, like Atef Ghazawy who called for help from his neighbor Khalifa Al-Refaie who saved him from the burning third floor. It was the same case for Christians. Many of them stood by their Muslim neighbors who were facing a crisis. In Al-Malak Church, we tried to speak to Christian clergymen but they apologized.
Many of the inhabitants we met confirmed that the way the incidents occurred raises many question marks, especially about the timing. Some surprised us’ also convey the intended meaning?] confirming that someone is dragging the village into conflicts. They said that anonymous shooting was heard near the church, and nobody knew its source. They also said that someone drove a bulldozer at iftar, and with the help of a number of people, broke in the wooden kiosks in Port Said Street while their owners were busy having iftar. In addition, groups of people were rushing to each party screaming at everybody to rush and help their brothers who were being killed and beaten.
Investigations:
At the sites of the incidents, a team from Supreme State Security Prosecution, lead by Counselor Hisham Sarraya, General Attorney of the Supreme State Security Prosecution is present. The team includes two prosecution presidents and three first prosecution deputies, working twenty-four hours [a day]. The investigations included questioning the injured and the families of the victims in addition to inspecting the places that witnessed destruction in Dar Al-Salam and Al-Koshh.
In Dar Al-Salam alone, the prosecution has investigated and inspected sixty-three sites owned by individuals of the two sides. Inspection unveiled a surprise: that some [of the claims that places were destroyed] were faked. It was revealed that there were only some scratches on walls or doors, contradicting with the content of the report that the place was subject to looting and burning. The number of those accused of stealing and burning in the city alone were twenty-eight, all of whom were detained.
In the village of Al-Koshh, Counselor Hisham Saraya and the prosecution team inspected the sites of the incidents over a period of two days and listened to the testimony of the witnesses and the victims. According to what they have heard, it was decided to seize twelve people. Questioning them started in the evening of Thursday and continued until yesterday morning. They were all ordered to be detained for fifteen days pending investigations. Prosecution will resume its investigations concerning the Koshh incidents in Cairo this morning, while the integral prosecution of Sohag will continue the investigations of Dar Al-Salam incidents.
Last Thursday, prosecution finished hearing eighteen witnesses and the victims who told [them] how the incidents started and how their injuries happened. Some of them accused certain people. Prosecution decisions concerning these people are being carried out. In addition, prosecution had heard the testimony of the mother whose son was found burned [to death] in fields.
