Coptic Christians in Australia having their refugee claims reconsidered in light of recent attacks

[EmperorScorpious]

[quote]Coptic Christians who were refused refugee status in Australia will have their claims for protection reconsidered, following a spate of violent assaults on the religious minority in Egypt.

[B]About 20 Coptic families previously facing forced removal from Australia will be given visas to stay in the country while their claims are re-evaluated.[/B]

Persecution of Christians in Egypt by terrorists aligned with Islamic State has significantly worsened in recent months, with a series of bombings and targeted massacres.

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The Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, said the loss of more followers of the Coptic Christian faith to terrorism was “felt deeply by the rest of the Australian community”.
[B]
“Australia stands united with the Coptic Christians in shared resolve to eradicate the scourge of terrorism,” Turnbull said.
[/B]
[B]Since 2013, about 550 protection visas have been granted to Coptic Christians in Australia.[/B] The immigration minister and assistant immigration minister have intervened in about 70 cases this year to grant protection visas.

In parliament on Monday, the Labor member for Wills, Peter Khalil – himself a Coptic Christian born in Egypt – urged the government to halt the removal of Copts from Australia.

“The Copts in Egypt today are under siege, attacked relentlessly by Islamic State,” he told the House of Representatives. “The whole world can see that Islamic State and their affiliates have made the Copts their primary target over the past 12 months.”[/quote]

[url]https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/jun/01/hundreds-of-coptic-christians-in-australia-to-have-refugee-claims-reassessed[/url]