Egyptian Christian who stabbed wife kills himself

ASSIUT, Egypt (AP) — Egyptian security officials say a Coptic Christian who stabbed his wife for converting to Islam has killed himself by jumping out of a fourth-story courthouse window.

The officials say Romany Amir committed suicide on Sunday as he was waiting to be interrogated by police at the main court in the southern city of Assiut. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media

Amir's wife remained in hospital in critical condition following the stabbing on Saturday.

Amir was buried later Sunday in his village near Assiut. The area is a stronghold of Islamists and mourners chanted slogans against them during the funeral.

Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 90 million people and complain of discrimination by authorities.

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Islamists accuse US of interference in Egyptian affairs

CAIRO (Reuters) - President Mohamed Mursi's Islamist allies accused the United States on Tuesday of blatant interference in Egypt's affairs after Washington said Cairo was muzzling freedom of speech.

On Monday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland criticised the questioning of the most popular Egyptian television satirist over allegations that he insulted Mursi and Islam.

Bassem Youssef, who rose to fame with a satirical online show after the uprising that swept Hosni Mubarak from power in 2011, turned himself in on Sunday after the prosecutor general issued an arrest warrant for the comedian.

The Justice and Freedom Party, political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, condemned the comments from Nuland and said the government was committed to freedom of expression. "Nuland's statements are ... blatantly interfering in Egypt's internal affairs," a party statement said.

In Washington, Nuland said her remarks on Monday represented the views of the U.S. government and "we stand by those views as articulated here yesterday."

"Our point here yesterday was to say that rule of law needs to be applied appropriately in all circumstances," she told reporters at her daily news briefing.

"So no, we reject the notion that we were interfering."

Youssef, whose programme is now on television and has been compared to U.S. satirist Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show", is accused of insulting Islam and undermining Mursi's standing.

The prosecutor general issued the warrant after at least four legal complaints filed by supporters of Mursi, an Islamist who was freely elected in June.

In what seemed a gesture of defiance, Youssef arrived at the prosecutor general's office wearing an oversized graduation hat modelled on one donned by Mursi when he was awarded an honorary degree in Pakistan in March. He was later released on bail of 15,000 Egyptian pounds.

Nuland said on Monday Egyptian authorities seemed to be selectively prosecuting those accused of insulting the government while ignoring or playing down attacks on anti-government protesters and cases of "extreme police brutality".

The U.S. view is important in part because Washington provides $1.3 billion per year in military aid to Cairo.

Egypt has been in a state of political turmoil since the ouster of Mubarak, a long-time U.S. ally. Political uncertainty and growing street crime have deterred tourism, long an important driver of the Egyptian economy.

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Islamists accuse U.S. of interference in Egyptian affairs

CAIRO (Reuters) - President Mohamed Mursi's Islamist allies accused the United States on Tuesday of blatant interference in Egypt's affairs after Washington said Cairo was muzzling freedom of speech.

On Monday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland criticized the questioning of the most popular Egyptian television satirist over allegations that he insulted Mursi and Islam.

Bassem Youssef, who rose to fame with a satirical online show after the uprising that swept Hosni Mubarak from power in 2011, turned himself in on Sunday after the prosecutor general issued an arrest warrant for the comedian.

The Justice and Freedom Party, political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, condemned the comments from Nuland and said the government was committed to freedom of expression. "Nuland's statements are ... blatantly interfering in Egypt's internal affairs," a party statement said.

In Washington, Nuland said her remarks on Monday represented the views of the U.S. government and "we stand by those views as articulated here yesterday."

"Our point here yesterday was to say that rule of law needs to be applied appropriately in all circumstances," she told reporters at her daily news briefing.

"So no, we reject the notion that we were interfering."

Youssef, whose program is now on television and has been compared to U.S. satirist Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show", is accused of insulting Islam and undermining Mursi's standing.

The prosecutor general issued the warrant after at least four legal complaints filed by supporters of Mursi, an Islamist who was freely elected in June.

In what seemed a gesture of defiance, Youssef arrived at the prosecutor general's office wearing an oversized graduation hat modeled on one donned by Mursi when he was awarded an honorary degree in Pakistan in March. He was later released on bail of 15,000 Egyptian pounds ($2,200).

Nuland said on Monday Egyptian authorities seemed to be selectively prosecuting those accused of insulting the government while ignoring or playing down attacks on anti-government protesters and cases of "extreme police brutality".

The U.S. view is important in part because Washington provides $1.3 billion per year in military aid to Cairo.

Egypt has been in a state of political turmoil since the ouster of Mubarak, a long-time U.S. ally. Political uncertainty and growing street crime have deterred tourism, long an important driver of the Egyptian economy.

(Reporting by Ulf Laessing; additional reporting by Paul Eckert in Washington; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Mohammad Zargham)

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Egyptian Christian dies in Libyan detention

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian Foreign Ministry official says a man suspected of trying to spread Christianity in Libya has died in prison there.

The diplomat says Ezzat Atallah, who suffered from diabetes and heart ailments, likely died of natural causes. He spoke anonymously Sunday in line with regulations.

Atallah was among five Evangelical Christian Egyptians detained in Libya for allegedly proselytizing in the predominantly Muslim nation.

Last week, Egypt's Foreign Ministry intervened to win release from Libya of 55 Egyptians who were also suspected of proselytizing. Thirty-five of them were deported for illegally entering the country, while 20 were cleared to stay in Libya.

Also, four foreigners under investigation for alleged espionage and proselytizing remain in a Libyan prison. They are a Swedish-American, a South Korean, a South African and an Egyptian.

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