US says Egypt should not delay election

US says Egypt should not delay election

The United States has called for restraint in Egypt after 25 people, most of them Christian demonstrators, were killed in the worst violence since Hosni Mubarak was toppled as president in February.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said that the United States "stands with the Egyptian people" and believes the rights of minorities, including the Copts, must be respected as Egypt moves toward democracy.

"These tragic events should not stand in the way of timely elections and a continued transition to democracy that is peaceful, just and inclusive", Carney said in a statement.

Protest

Christians, who make up 10 percent of Egypt's roughly 80 million people, took to the streets after blaming Muslim radicals for partially demolishing a church in Aswan province last week.

At least 25 people were killed when Egyptian troops crushed the protest.

Some of the demonstrators said agitators sparked violence that prompted the heavy-handed military response.

The violence has come before parliamentary elections on November 28, the first election since the military took over.

Tensions between Christians and Muslims have increased since the popular uprising that ousted Mubarak.

Burying the dead

Meanwhile, thousands of Egyptian Coptic Christians attended a mass funeral for Christian protesters killed in street battles with security forces in Cairo.

The country's ruling military council has ordered the government to investigate the violence.

Reuters/Ehimen/Ekata