Coptic Pope Shenouda III denied media reports that he had discussed an initiative of Mohamed Badie, Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, to hold meetings with Copts for the group to answer any queries and reassure them if they had any fears.
Shenouda said he called Badie to thank him for congratulating the former on safely coming back from medical treatment in the United States and for the letter he had sent him. “I did not discuss any such initiative with him,” he said.
“The pope could have misunderstood Badie,” said group spokesman Essam al-Eryan. “Our initiative still stands, for we consider the Copts equal citizens and not a religious group.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition
