Thousands of Christians and Muslims have clashed in the Egyptian capital Cairo, with one Christian man killed and scores wounded.

It was the second burst of sectarian fighting in as many days and the latest in a string of violent protests over a variety of topics as simmering unrest continues nearly a month after mass protests led to the removal of President Hosni Mubarak.

The violence erupted after Coptic Christians held protests in several locations in Cairo against perceived persecution by the country's Muslim majority.

The Christians have been angered by last week's burning by a Muslim mob of a church in a Cairo suburb.

Egypt's military rulers have since pledged to rebuild the church and Prime Minister Essam Sharaf met the protesters outside the TV building on Monday.

But the protesters said they wanted more steps to improve the status of Christians.

About 2,000 of them cut off a main road running on the eastern side of the city and pelted motorists with rocks. Another crowd of about 1,000 protested outside the TV building.

The group which included a group of garbage collectors, who are predominantly Christian, demanded equal rights and better quality of life. The clashes broke out when they were confronted by Muslims, witnesses said.

At least one Christian man was killed and about 100 others wounded in the fighting, according to an Egyptian hospital official.

Even before the uprising unleashed a torrent of discontent in Egypt, tensions had been growing between Christians and Muslims in the country.

On New Year's Day, a suicide bombing outside a Coptic church in the port city of Alexandria killed 21 people, setting off days of protests. Barely a week later, an off-duty policeman boarded a train and shot dead a 71-year-old Christian man and wounded his wife and four others.