Christians targeted in Egypt, U.N. says

GENEVA, Switzerland, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- U.N advisers on genocide said Friday they were concerned by the targeting of religious minorities caught up in the ongoing Egyptian political confrontation.

Hundreds of Egyptians were killed this week in clashes between government forces and supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi.

The U.N. Security Council weighed the crisis during a Thursday meeting and the European Union vowed to take up the matter during a Monday meeting. U.S. President Barack Obama said he was questioning the traditional relationship with Egypt given the severity of the violence.

Adama Dieng, U.N. special envoy on the prevention of genocide, and Jennifer Welsh, the envoy on the responsibility to protect, issued a joint statement Friday expressing alarm Christian institutions were targeted during the violence.

See also: 

On the Brink of Disaster: 20 Christian Churches Attacked in Egypt