COMMENTARY: Egypt's Policy to Allow Muslims to Destroy Churches, Kill Christians Must End

At least two dozen people were killed and hundreds were injured in Cairo, Egypt this week, after Christians -- angry over a recent church attack -- staged a peaceful sit-in, and were attacked by Muslim extremists and Egyptian security forces.

The rioting -- the worst in Egypt since Hosni Mubarak's ouster as president last February -- brought out deployment of more than 1,000 security forces and armored vehicles. Some of the armored vehicles sped into the crowd, killing several protesters.

Nonetheless, today the Egyptian government denied that it killed any protesters, claiming that all the deaths were the result of fighting between Christians and Muslims.

Coptic Orthodox Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 80 million people, while Muslims make up nearly 90 percent. Muslim extremists -- who would like to see the number of Christians significantly reduced in Egypt -- have been killing Christians and damaging their churches for several years, and have in fact increased these illegal activities since Mubarak's ouster.

The Egyptian government and police have tended to "look the other way" and have failed to punish the Muslim extremists for their illegal activities, since they are also primarily staffed by Muslims. Indeed, they have been prejudiced and indifferent toward the abusive actions against Egypt's Christian minority.

The anti-Christian policy of the military rulers in Egypt became more obvious today, as they blamed Christian victims for the violent clashes that occurred on October 9. This is just one more example of a military junta blaming its victims for its own oppressive actions.

There is a saying that is very appropriate regarding the Egyptian military's denial that it killed any Christians during this week's rioting in Cairo: "Denial is not a river in Egypt!"