Washington, D.C. — September 2, 2026 — Coptic Solidarity today released The Stones Remember: Report on Coptic Heritage and Violations of Cultural Rights and Religious Freedom in Egypt, alongside a new interactive digital exhibit documenting threats to Coptic and Christian religious and cultural heritage across Egypt.
Based on a three-month investigation of 20 qualifying cases between 2023 and 2026 using the CoptWatch methodology, the report identifies two recurring patterns: cultural destruction, including attacks, demolitions, property destruction, and subsequent coerced reconciliation; and cultural engineering, involving legal and administrative measures that alter the status, administration, or control of Christian heritage sites while excluding affected religious communities from meaningful participation.
The documented cases demonstrate that harm to Coptic heritage extends beyond the physical loss of material, historic property. Many concern living churches, monasteries, cemeteries, pilgrimage sites, and religious institutions, implicating freedom of religion or belief, cultural and minority rights, the right to non-discrimination, the right to effective remedy, and, in some cases, the liberty and security of persons. The accompanying interactive exhibit brings six of the documented cases to life through maps, photographs, source materials, and historical context.
“The preservation of Coptic heritage requires more than the development of religious tourism and the building of churches in new cities,” said Caroline Doss, President of Coptic Solidarity. “It requires protecting the rights and continued participation of the communities to whom it belongs.”
Coptic Solidarity calls on Egyptian authorities to halt unilateral and detrimental interference with Christian religious and cultural sites and ensure meaningful community participation in decisions affecting their living heritage. The report also provides recommendations to the United States, European Union, United Nations, and UNESCO for monitoring, diplomatic engagement, and accountability.
Media and project inquiries: coptadvocacy@copticsolidarity.org
