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Angry palestinians bomb church
16/09/2006 16:51 - (SA)
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| A Palestinian child holds a copy of the Quran in a protest against Pope Benedict XVI in Gaza City. (Adel Hana, AP) |
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Gaza City - Assailants angry at Pope Benedict XVI's comments on Islam targeted several Christian churches across the Palestinian territories on Saturday, the second day of attacks directed at churches.
A group calling itself the Islamic Organisation of the Swords of Righteousness claimed responsibility for unleashing a volley of gunfire on the oldest church in Gaza City on Saturday.
"We carried out this shooting because of the pope's statement, and he must apologise," a man, who refused to give his name, told AFP.
The attack on the church came a day after a grenade exploded outside the church and four days after the pope criticised connections between Islam and violence, particularly with regard to jihad or "holy war".
In the West Bank town of Nablus, gunmen threw Molotov cocktails at four churches of different denominations, Palestinian security sources told AFP on Saturday.
In one incident, said sources, gunmen opened fire inside an empty Catholic church after the building's entrance door was burnt down.
No casualties or damage were reported in the incidents.
The Vatican issued a statement on Saturday saying that the pope was "extremely sorry" for the offence his comments on Islam had caused.
- AFP
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