DalgaAlso spelled ''Delga, Delja, Dilja'' ( arz, دلجا; cop, ⲧϫⲉⲗⲓ, ⲉⲧⲉⲗⲕⲉ) is a town of about 120,000 people in
Minya Governorate
Minya Governorate ( ar, محافظة المنيا ') is one of the governorates of Egypt, governorates of Upper Egypt. Its capital city, Minya, Egypt, Minya, is located on the left bank of the Nile River.
Etymology
The name originates from the c ...
in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
. About 20,000 Christians live there. It was occupied by Islamists on July 3, 2013, the day
Mohamed Morsi
Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Eissa al-AyyatThe spellings of his first and last names vary. survey of 14 news organizations plus Wikipedia in July 2012Abba Or of Nitria.
Under Islamist rule the ancient
Coptic Christian
Copts ( cop, ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ; ar, الْقِبْط ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity. Most ethnic Copts are ...
Monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
of the Virgin Mary and St. Abraam was looted and burned as were the Catholic and Anglican churches; Christians were terrorized.
hot desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one ...