Alaa Al-Aswany calls to rebuild Egypt’s churches

Alaa Al-Aswany, the Arab world’s bestselling novelist, is calling on Egyptians to join a campaign he has launched to rebuild churches attacked in recent unrest in Egypt. Scores of churches have been looted and torched since August 14, when Egyptian authorities launched a crackdown against Muslim Brotherhood supporters calling for the reinstatement of ousted president Mohammed Morsi.    Like many Egyptians, Aswany blames the Brotherhood for the attacks, a claim the Islamist group denies. The author, who wrote the bestselling The Yacoubian Building, told Egypt Today that the Brotherhood has ?proved to everybody that they are using religion as a front for other purposes, and have caused the ?destruction of mosques, burned churches, killed people and spread terror among Egyptians.? The group will not last much longer, Aswany added. Earlier in August, the writer told US National Public Radio (NPR) the security crackdown on pro-Morsi protests that left hundreds dead was “unavoidable”. Speaking the day after the clashes, Aswany,  who is a founding member of the  Kefaya protest movement, said: “The Egyptian state was not facing peaceful protesters. We have armed violent groups who are killing people. “I feel, of course, very, very sorry for all the victims who were killed yesterday, and I don't care on which side the victims were. But I believe that the Egyptian state didn't have any other choice, and I believe that the Muslim brothers hold responsibility for this drama.”