Communal riots in Egypt: 3 die

The clashes -- which also left some 60 wounded -- were some of the worst communal violence Egypt has seen in years, underscoring the fragile religious balance of the Arab world's most populous country.

Some 5,000 Muslims had gathered Friday outside the Saint Girgis Coptic Orthodox church to protest against the recent DVD release of an amateur play produced by the city's Christian community.

Bludgeon-wielding riot police tried to contain the angry mob before lunging into the crowd and firing tear gas grenades. Witnesses also said police fired rubber bullets.

The interior ministry said in a statement it responded to "radical elements in the crowd" but the opposition Ghad party candidate for the upcoming parliamentary polls said security provoked the protestors.