Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the treatment of Christians in Egypt.

We are concerned about terrorist attacks in Egypt that have targeted the Coptic community and at reports of sectarian violence. Combating sectarian violence is a shared strategic objective for the Egyptian and British Governments and we welcome President Sisi's calls for peaceful coexistence between communities. The Government of Egypt has stated its commitment to protecting the rights of minorities and of the need for religious tolerance, and the Egyptian constitution contains protection for Freedom of Religious Belief. It is important that these rights are respected.