At least 44 people were killed in two bombings targeting Egypt’s Christian minority on Sunday - the first at St George's Church in Tanta, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) north of Cairo, followed by the explosion during Mass at Alexandria’s Saint Mark’s Cathedral.
Nagwa Abdel-Aleem, 55, was guarding the entrance to the church when the suicide bomber attempted to pass her security check. Unable to proceed any further, he detonated the bomb at the main gate. It is thought the attacker's primary target was Pope Tawadros II, who had left the site a few minutes earlier.
Ms Abdel-Aleem is the first woman to die in the line of duty in Egypt’s police force. Egyptian media reported that one of Ms Abdel-Aleem’s two sons, also a police officer, also died in the incident.
Pictures of her alongside her husband, an army lieutenant, have been widely circulated on social media, along with messages of thanks and blessings.
"Muslim police officer in a hijab lost her life defending Alexandria's Coptic Cathedral. Don't judge people by what they wear. Actions count,” one tribute on Twitter read, The Independent reported.
The attacks occurred on Palm Sunday, a week before Coptic Easter. Pope Francis is due to visit Egypt later in April.
Egypt’s Christian minority - around 10 per cent of the 90 million strong population - is the frequent targets of extremist groups around the country as well as Daesh-affiliated militants in the Sinai, which have flourished in the chaos that has engulfed Egypt since the 2011 revolution.
Sunday’s attacks have sparked renewed public anger at President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who has promised to crack down on extremism.
Daesh claimed responsibility for the bloodshed later on Sunday, claiming that two of its fighters wearing suicide vests carried out the attacks, and warned of more to come.