Arrests and accusations  Egypt | A once protected-and ancient-
Christian community in Egypt faces new threats  Issue: "All's
fair at the fair," Aug. 25, 2007  When the Arab world was in a
state of war with Israel, Egypt signed a peace treaty with the
fledgling nation. When Islamic extremism began to take root in
Egypt several decades ago, the state fought back against the
terrorists within its borders. And Egypt's 6 million to 11
million Copts-the oldest and largest community of Christians in
the Middle East-have been relatively accepted in their homeland
compared to their brothers and sisters in neighboring countries.
But a recent wave of state-sponsored persecution of Christians
calls into question Egypt's current course and the growing
influence of the most radical elements of Muslim society.
Members of Egypt's State Security Investigations (SSI) arrested
Christian activists Adel Fawzy and Peter Ezzat on Aug. 8,
accusing the men of charges that include insulting Islam,
jeopardizing state security, and pre