These persons, Anba Macarius said, are well known to the villagers. The bishop added that his driver speeded to escape the attackers and dropped him off at his destination in al-Sarw.
Once there, the assailants surrounded the house for some one-and-a-half hour, intermittently firing at it and breaking its entrance and windows.
When calm finally reigned, Anba Macarius left. He deplored the terrorist activity against civilians in general and Copts—who are the weaker links in the social chain—in specific; and called for stronger security presence.
It is unclear if the intention of the gunmen was to kill the bishop or just to intimidate him and those with him. No one was hurt in the incident.
The bishop later returned to his diocesan headquarters in Al Minya.