Feature: Bereaved Christians across Egypt brace for Easter celebrations

Christians across the country are preparing to mark the celebrations of crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, one of Christianity's most important events, days after twin church bombings that killed 45 worshippers.

"Even if we are sad for the death of our beloved, the happiness of Easter will help us overcome the feelings of pain," Magdy Naseif, a 52-year-old physician, told Xinhua on Saturday.

"We won't break joy of our children with the Easter," said Naseif, while preparing gifts to be distributed to the kids of his family during the feast.

On Friday, Egypt's Christians flocked to the churches in an even larger number than previous years to mark the Good Friday with prayers and fasting.

"The number of prayers will be doubled to send a message to terrorists that we are not afraid," said Naseif, before going to commemorate the feast in Saint Markos Coptic Church in Heliopolis.

Last Sunday's attacks in the cities of Alexandria and Tanta were claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group, which often stage attacks against security personnel in North Sinai.

The IS recently stepped up assaults on Christians in Egypt and claimed responsibility for a bombing attack in December that killed at least 29 in a Coptic cathedral in Cairo.

The government ordered a three-month state of emergency, which was unanimously approved by parliament on Tuesday, and called in the army to protect vital structures.

"We expected that people would be too scared to attend prayers on Friday, but the numbers were double of the normal feasts," said Nariman Edward, a woman in her twenties, before setting off to attend the evening Mass with her family at Saint Abu-Sefein Coptic church in Maadi district, southeast of the capital Cairo.

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria cancelled on Friday most of the Easter celebrations, limiting them to a simple Mass.

"Easter celebrations shouldn't come at a time of offering condolences to our martyrs," Pope Tawadros said during his sermon on Good Friday.

On Wednesday, the Interior Ministry identified the perpetrator of the church attack in Alexandria as Mahmud Hassan Mubarak Abdullah, born in the southern province of Qena in 1986.

On Thursday, the ministry said it identified the bomber blowing himself up in the Tanta church as Mamduh Amin Mohammed Baghdadi, born in Qena Province in 1977.

It also announced plans to reward 500,000 Egyptian pounds (27,586 U.S. dollars) for those providing information leading to the suspects.

The past days witnessed a sharp increase in security measures across the country, with checkpoints set up along the roads that lead to the country's main churches.

The ministry said intensive measures, including deployment of disposal bomb teams, have been taken to protect 296 churches nationwide.

"We won't forget our martyrs, and would pray for peace and life in our mass today," Edward said.

"God is love, and the celebrations would heal all the pains," the woman added.

"Egypt is our home, and extremists wouldn't terrorize or force us to hide or leave," she said with determination. Endit