Pope Tawadros II leads Easter mass

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria and Patriarch of Saint Mark Diocese led the Easter Mass in the Coptic Cathedral in Cairo's Abbassiya district Saturday evening.

The Mass is attended by a representative of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and a number of ministers, senior officials and foreign and Arab ambassadors.

 In his sermon during the Mass, Pope Tawadros II thanked President Abdel Fattah El Sisi for sending a delegate to attend the celebration.

The head of the Coptic Orthodox Church also said that Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab sent a congratulatory cable and delegated a Cabinet official to attend the Mass.

He added that he received an Al Azhar delegation led by Awqaf Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa who conveyed the greetings of Al Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed el Tayyib and Egypt's Mufti Shawqi Allam, who are out of Cairo.

"Defense Minister Sedki Sobhi phoned me and delegated army commanders to attend the Mass," the pope said.

He also noted that Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar visited him in the morning to extend greetings on Easter.

He thanked all officials who attended the Mass, including Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat and Transitional Justice Minister Ibrahim el Heneidi.