Al-Hākim ordered the destruction of the Church of Konīame belonging to the Christians in Jerusalem and permitted the people to take the goods and belongings there, allowing them to plunder. The reason for this was the fire they lit on the day of the feast they celebrated as the day when Prophet Jesus would rise from the dead. They deceived the ignorant by claiming that this fire had descended from the sky. In reality, this fire was kindled by applying lentil oil to silk threads and oil to matches and other items. They skillfully made the common people and the ignorant believe this. To this day, the same fire is lit on the site of that church.
Similarly, in this same year, several churches were demolished in Egypt, and the Christians were given the following ultimatum: "Whoever among you wishes to enter Islam, let him do so. Whoever does not wish to enter may return safely to Byzantium. But if anyone wishes to remain here adhering to his own religion, he will be subject to certain conditions. For example, he must wear a cross on his chest, which will be made of wood and weigh four rıṭl (460 grams). As for the Jews, those who wish to remain in Egypt adhering to their religion must carry on their chests a calf's head statue weighing six rıṭl. In the baths, each of them must wear a water jug weighing five rıṭl around their necks, and there will also be bells; moreover, they will never be allowed to ride horses..."
After all this, al-Hākim ordered the reconstruction of the destroyed churches and permitted those non-Muslims who had converted to Islam to return to their former religions, saying: "We are purifying our mosques from those whose hearts and intentions are unknown who enter and worship." May Allah curse him,