Police fired live ammunition into the air and lobbed tear gas into rioting crowds of Christians and Muslims today in a third day of sectarian violence in Egypt's second-largest city.
A Muslim man in Alexandria reportedly died of wounds suffered a day earlier and dozens more were wounded and arrested.
Police fought back against Coptic Christians who were surrounded by a security cordon around the Saints Church after the mob began hurling stones and bottles from inside the police line and fellow demonstrators tossed Molotov cocktails from the balconies of nearby buildings.
Most of the protesters were between ages 12 and 25.
Later, a huge mob of what appeared to be Muslim protesters charged the police cordon from the other side.
A Muslim Brotherhood parliamentarian, said a 24-year-old Muslim died early today of wounds from a beating by Christians during rioting yesterday.
The Christian protesters behind the police cordon repeatedly surged against it from the front of the church and by late afternoon were hurling rocks and bottles at security troops as others tossed firebombs from surrounding apartment balconies.
Earlier today, police said 43 people had been wounded in clashes near the church and 50 others were arrested, as religious leaders and politicians sought to ease sectarian tensions in the aftermath of a series of weekend attacks on Coptic churches.
About 2,000 riot police had cordoned the front of the Saints Church, but were unable to prevent the late-afternoon melee by some 200 young men who had been milling around the church grounds after services ended. They carried wooden crosses, clubs and machetes. Officials said more security forces had been sent to the city to maintain calm.
The violence apparently was prompted by knife attacks that wounded as many as 16 people at three churches in Alexandria on Friday. Although it was Good Friday for many of the world's Christians, the Copts and other Eastern Orthodox churches celebrate Easter next week.
Police said Alexandria governor Mohammad Abdel Salam Mahgoub and local politicians were trying calm the situation along with members of the powerful Muslim Brotherhood.
Coptic Christians are 10 per cent of Egypt's 73 million population and generally live in peace with the Muslim majority, though occasional sectarian clashes have occurred.
Most recently, Muslim militants attacked churches in the Moharrem Bek area of Alexandria protesting the distribution of a DVD that they deemed offensive to Islam.
Four people were killed in week-long riots.
AP