CAIRO (CWNews.com)

    A Coptic Christian was killed and three others injured in a dispute with Muslim neighbors over the construction of a church on Wednesday.

    Fakhri Ayyad Mus'ad, 38, was shot after Muslim farmers discovered that unlicensed construction work by a Copt in a nearby field was a church. Egypt, which is 90 percent Muslim, requires special permits for the construction or renovation of a church building. Disputes over church work and Christian activity are common in Egypt.

    Police said security forces moved into the town of Sool, about 30 miles south of Cairo, and arrested a large group of people. The Interior Ministry said in a statement that Mus'ad was shot dead by an unidentified man while he was unloading a pickup truck at his poultry farm. "Initial investigations showed that there is a dispute between Mus'ad and others in the village over a plot of land," said the statement.

We encourage you to check the Catholic World News site at the CWN home page and Church News at Noticias Eclesiales and the Dossiers, features and Daily Dispatches from ZENIT International News Agency CWN, NE and ZENIT are not affiliated with the Daily CATHOLIC, but provide this service via e-mail to the Daily CATHOLIC Monday through Friday.