US Edition Riot police in armoured vehicles were deployed outside the blood-spattered church as Egyptian newspapers warned that "civil war" could break out unless Christians and Muslims close ranks after a deadly attack on a Coptic church that triggered angry protests.
The authorities said that a suicide bomber blew himself up outside Al-Qiddissin church in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria early on New Year's Day, killing 21 people and wounding 79 others.
The service was marked by the grief and anger felt by a congregation devastated by the attack, which took place Saturday outside the church's door about 30 minutes into the New Year.
Many sobbed while others cried hysterically, screamed in anger or slapped themselves. "They died, they died," a woman kept saying.
Some lamented that attacks on Christians and churches often happen during usually happy occasions like Christmas and New Year. Others complained that the government was not doing enough to protect churches.
"We spend every feast in grief," said Sohair Fawzy, who lost two sisters and a niece in the attack.
Father Maqar, who led the service did not give a sermon, preferring to express his grief with silence.
"I tell Christians to pray and pray to ease their agony," he said.
Grim reminders of the attack remained in the church a day after the bombing. Its ground floor was stained with the blood of victims brought inside immediately after the attack. Two statues of Christ and the Virgin Mary were toppled and the benches were scattered by the impact of the blast. A "2011" sign hung on the inside of the church's door was torn apart.
The attack Saturday was the worst violence against Egypt's Christian minority in a decade. It sparked clashes between Christians who say the government hasn't done enough to protect them and riot police.
The Interior Ministry blamed the bombing on "foreign elements."
The Alexandria governor accused al-Qaida, pointing to the terror network's branch in Iraq, which has attacked Christians there and threatened Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Christian community.
Egypt's government has long insisted that the terror network does not have a significant presence in the country, and it has never been conclusively linked to any attacks here. If al-Qaida were involved, it would raise the prospect of a serious new security threat within Egypt.
President Barack Obama condemned "this barbaric and heinous act" and said those behind it must be brought to justice.