An Egyptian uses his cell phone to take pictures of the destruction, debris, and bloodstains on the walls and icon murals inside the Mar Girgis Coptic Orthodox Church in the Nile Delta City of Tanta, 120 kilometers north of Cairo, at which a bomb blast struck worshippers gathering to attend the Palm Sunday mass, on April 9, 2017. AFP
EDITOR’S NOTE: Some graphic images below
TANTA, Egypt — Coptic Christian worshippers in Egypt spoke of horrific scenes on Sunday after a bomb ripped through their church during a service, mangling bodies and destroying pews.
“There was a violent explosion near the altar,” Edmon Edward told AFP.
“Suddenly everything became black, people flew over each other,” he said. CBB
READ: Egyptian Christians recall horror of Islamist bombing of church | Church bombings in Egypt kill 37, wound dozens
Egyptians raise wooden crosses and palm leaves, originally intended for Palm Sunday celebrations, as they gather outside the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria after a bomb blast struck outside as worshipers attended Palm Sunday mass on April 9, 2017. The Interior ministry said Coptic Pope Tawadros II was inside the church leading a Palm Sunday service when the suicide bomber was stopped by police outside and blew himself up. AFP
A general view shows people looking at the aftermath following a bomb blast which struck worshippers gathering to celebrate Palm Sunday at the Mar Girgis Coptic Church in the Nile Delta City of Tanta, 120 kilometers north of Cairo, on April 9, 2017. AFP
An Egyptian woman raises braided palm leaves, originally intended for Palm Sunday celebrations, during a gathering outside the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria after a bomb blast struck outside while worshipers attended Palm Sunday mass on April 9, 2017. AFP
Egyptians raise wooden crosses and palm leaves, originally intended for Palm Sunday celebrations, as they gather outside the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria after a bomb blast struck outside while worshipers attended Palm Sunday mass on April 9, 2017. AFP
A general view shows forensics collecting evidence at the site of a bomb blast which struck worshippers gathering to celebrate Palm Sunday at the Mar Girgis Coptic Church in the Nile Delta City of Tanta, 120 kilometers. AFP
Egyptians gather around a body in a street near a church in Alexandria after a bomb blast struck worshipers gathering to celebrate Palm Sunday on April 9, 2017. AFP
Two men stand atop the fence of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate in Alexandria as other Egyptians gather outside, after a bomb blast struck outside as worshipers attended Palm Sunday mass on April 9, 2017. AFP
Blood and debris are seen on a street near a church in Alexandria after a bomb blast struck worshipers gathering to celebrate Palm Sunday on April 9, 2017. AFP