WASHINGTON (AP) _ Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s visit to the Mideast peace summit in Washington has triggered protests denouncing the persecution of Christians in Egypt.

Members of Egypt’s Coptic Christian minority staged a noisy protest outside the White House Thursday, demanding that Mubarak work for justice at home instead of between Israelis and Palestinians.

The protesters cited the drive-by killing of Coptic Christian worshippers after their Christmas Eve service and the burning of Christian homes and churches. They also said Egyptian Muslims kidnap Coptic Christian girls and force them to convert to Islam.

Christianity predates Islam by centuries and is still the faith of about ten percent of Egyptians, but Coptic Christians say they routinely face oppression by Egypt’s Muslim majority.