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Updated 9/1/2010 8:21 PM GMT
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Egypt
Coptic Blogger in Egypt Released from Prison    Published in 2010
ISTANBUL, August 17 (CDN) — A Coptic Christian blogger arrested in Egypt on false charges of insulting Islam, then held for almost two years without charge under the country’s Emergency Law, has been released from prison.   Hani Nazeer, 31, a high school social worker ....
Couple Shot by Muslim Extremists Undaunted in Ministry    Published in 2010
CAIRO, Egypt, June 9 (CDN) — Rasha Samir was sure her husband, Ephraim Shehata, was dead. He was covered with blood, had two bullets inside him and was lying facedown in the dust of a dirt road. Samir was lying on top of him doing her best to shelter him from the onslaught of ....
Egyptian Convert Endures Life at a Standstill – on the Run    Published in 2010
CAIRO, Egypt, May 25 (CDN) — From the mosque across the street, words blasting from minaret megaphones reverberate throughout the tiny apartment where Maher Ahmad El-Mo’otahssem Bellah El-Gohary is forced to hide. Immediately following afternoon prayers, the Friday sermon is, ....
Egyptian Convert from Islam Devastated by ‘Delay Tactic’    Published in 2010
CAIRO, Egypt, May 17 (CDN) — An Egyptian convert to Christianity said he is devastated by a recent court decision to suspend a lawsuit he filed to change the religion on his identification card from Muslim to Christian. The First District of the Court of the State Council on ....
Sheikh Incites Muslims to Attack Christians in Egypt    Published in 2010
ISTANBUL, March 17 (CDN) — A mob of enraged Muslims attacked a Coptic Christian community in a coastal town in northern Egypt last weekend, wreaking havoc for hours and injuring 24 Copts before security forces contained them. The violence erupted on Friday (March 12) ....
Egyptian Court Refuses to Return Passport to Christian    Published in 2010
ISTANBUL, March 15 (CDN) — An Egyptian court last week refused to return the passport of a convert from Islam who tried to leave Egypt to save his life, the Christian said on Friday (March 12).     On Tuesday (March 9) the Egyptian State Council Court in Giza, ....
Another Copt Killed as Alleged Shooters Plead Not Guilty in Egypt    Published in 2010
ISTANBUL, February 16 (CDN) — Three men accused of killing six Coptic worshipers and a security guard pleaded not guilty on Saturday (Feb. 13) as the Coptic community mourned the loss of yet another victim of apparent anti-Christian violence.   The three men allegedly ....
Coptic Christians Gunned Down after Christmas Service    Published in 2010
LOS ANGELES, January 7 (CDN) — In spite of threats of violence from Muslims in an area of Egypt wracked by sectarian violence, police declined to increase security for a Coptic Christmas Eve service on Jan. 6, and six Christians were shot to death after leaving the church. ....
Coptic Blogger Threatens Hunger Strike    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, November 9 (CDN) — A Coptic Christian blogger in Egypt held in prison for more than a year without charge said today he will go on a hunger strike unless authorities grant his next application for release. Hani Nazeer, a 28-year-old high school social worker from ....
Coptic Blogger in Egypt Pressured to Convert in Prison    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, October 31 (CDN) — A Coptic Christian blogger in Egypt entering his second year of prison without charge is being pressured to convert to Islam in exchange for his freedom, his attorneys said. On Oct. 3, 2008, Hani Nazeer, a 28-year-old high school social worker from ....
Coptic Family Forced to Surrender Woman Rescued in Egypt    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, October 9 (CDN) — State Security Investigations (SSI) forces in Egypt arrested, abused and then extorted money from a Coptic Christian for rescuing his daughter from her Muslim husband, who was holding her against her will in Alexandria, according to sources in ....
Christian Arrested for Distributing Tracts    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, October 6 (CDN) — An Egyptian Christian arrested in Cairo for handing out gospel leaflets and held in prison illegally for four days has been released, the freed Protestant Copt told Compass.Abdel Kamel, 61, was arrested on Sept. 23 in downtown Cairo for handing out ....
Mourners Protest Islamic Attacks on Copts in Egypt    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, September 23 (CDN) — A funeral for a Coptic Christian gruesomely killed on a village street north of Cairo by a Muslim assailant last week turned into a protest by hundreds of demonstrators in Egypt. Galal Nasr el-Dardiri, 35, attacked 63-year-old Abdu Georgy in ....
Copts Grapple with Cause of Fire at Church    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, September 18 (CDN) — The congregation of a Coptic church that was destroyed by fire last week is divided over whether it was a case of arson. At 3 p.m. on Sept. 8, a fire broke out in the rear of the Church of Saint Paul and Saint Peter near the main entrance of ....
Two Copts in Egypt Imprisoned after Reporting Attack    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, August 20 (CDN) — Two Coptic Christians in Egypt have been arrested and are being held without charge after reporting to police they had been beaten by a mob, an attorney for the men said yesterday. On the evening of July 31, Reda Hnein, 35, his brother Nagi ....
Violence Again Erupts over Quest for Worship Site    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, July 31 (CDN) — The recent eruption of sectarian violence in Egypt’s Minya province continued last week as local Christians again faced harsh reprisals from Muslims for trying to convert a building into a worship facility. On July 24 security forces in the ....
Police Collusion Suspected in Attack on Church in Minya, Egypt    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, July 17 (CDN) — Villagers in Ezbet Basillious, Minya suspect local police in Egypt of corruption and collusion after two Copts were arrested for an arson attack on their own house church on Saturday (July 11).  Egyptian State Security Investigations (SSI) ....
Two Clashes Shake Egypt’s Coptic Community    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, July 7 (CDN) — Separate cases of sectarian violence in two villages erupted in Egypt last week, shaking the country’s Coptic Christian community as Muslims attacked their homes and security forces imposed curfews in an effort to maintain peace.  Last ....
Egyptian Court Grants Custody of Sons to Coptic Mother    Published in 2009
LOS ANGELES, July 1 (CDN) — A Christian mother in Egypt has won custody of her twin sons from her estranged husband, who had converted to Islam and claimed them according to Islamic legal precepts.  The now 15-year-old boys, however, will still be considered Muslims ....
Village Christians in Hiding after Clash in Egypt    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, June 25 (CDN) — Nearly 1,000 Coptic Christians are hiding in their homes after clashes erupted Sunday (June 21) between them and their village’s majority-Muslim population over the use of a three-story building belonging to the Coptic Church. When on Sunday at ....
Rescue of Coptic Girl in Egypt Prompts Muslim Attack    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, June 17 (CDN) — Egyptian news sources report security forces have wrongly detained two Christians for nearly a month as part of a ruse to cast a Muslim attack on Copts as “sectarian violence.” Violence broke out last month in the village of Toma, near ....
Egypt Denies Right to Convert to Second Christian    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, June 16 (CDN) — A Cairo judge on Saturday (June 13) rejected an Egyptian’s convert’s attempt to change his identification card’s religious status from Muslim to Christian, the second failed attempt to exercise constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom by a ....
Policemen in Egypt Sentenced to Only Five Years for Killing    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, June 8 (CDN) — Two policemen convicted of killing a Christian in Giza, Egypt have received only a five-year prison sentence for what lawyers are calling the cold-blooded murder of a Copt who stood up for his rights.  The Giza Criminal Court sentenced the two ....
Two Egyptian Copts Re-Arrested in Abu Fana Murder    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, May 29 (CDN) — Police this month released two Copts wrongfully arrested for killing a Muslim during an attack on Abu Fana monastery in Egypt in May 2008, but then re-arrested them as part of an intimidation campaign against Christians, their lawyer said. ....
Stabbing, Bombing Attacks Strike Near Two Churches in Egypt    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, May 22 (CDN) — In separate attacks in Egypt earlier this month, a Coptic Christian suffered severe stab wounds as he left a worship service in Minya, and a car-bombing outside a venerable church in Cairo disrupted a wedding. Without provocation, three Muslims ....
Egyptian Convert Airs Declaration of Priest’s Innocence    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, May 22 (CDN) — An Egyptian convert from Islam  who forged Christian identification papers and later used them to marry a Coptic man has appeared on a television show declaring the innocence of a priest serving a five-year sentence for marrying the couple. ....
Convert’s Religious Rights Case Threatens Egypt’s Islamists    Published in 2009
CAIRO, May 12 (CDN) — In the dilapidated office here of three lawyers representing one of Egypt’s “most wanted” Christian converts, the mood was hopeful in spite of a barrage of death threats against them and their client. At a court hearing on May 2, a judge agreed to a ....
Swine Destruction Threatens Coptic-Run Industry    Published in 2009
CAIRO, May 4 (CDN) — Authorities yesterday pressed ahead with the slaughter of Egypt’s pigs – crippling the livelihood of thousands of swine breeders, nearly all Coptic Christians – in spite of World Health Organization (WHO) criticism that the measure was unnecessary ....
Convert Arrested for Marrying Christian    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, April 22 (CDN) — Christian convert Raheal Henen Mussa and her Coptic husband are hiding from police and her Muslim family for violating an article of Islamic law (sharia) that doesn’t exist in the Egyptian penal code.  Police arrested Mussa, 22, on April 13 for ....
Coptic Church Issues First Conversion Certificate    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, April 13 (CDN) — In a bold move, Egypt’s Coptic Church has issued its first-ever certificate of conversion to a former Muslim, supporting his petition to have his national identification card denote his Christian faith. Maher Ahmad El-Mo’otahssem Bellah El-Gohary’s ....
Islamic Lawyers Urge Death Sentence for Convert    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, February 26 (CDN) — In the latest hearing of a Muslim-born Egyptian’s effort to officially convert to Christianity, opposing lawyers advocated he be convicted of “apostasy,” or leaving Islam, and sentenced to death. More than 20 Islamic lawyers attended the hearing on ....
Law Granting Twins to Muslim to be Reviewed    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, February 21 (CDN) — Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud last week granted the mother of 14-year-old twins Andrew and Mario Medhat Ramses the right to appeal a custody decision awarding her sons to their Muslim father. Muslim convert Medhat Ramses Labib gained ....
Ruling on Bid for Christian ID Expected Soon    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, February 10 (CDN) — Following a hearing on Saturday (Feb. 7), the lawyer for a Christian convert in Egypt said he is hopeful that his client will become the first Muslim-born Egyptian to be granted official identification as a Christian. Nabil Ghobreyal, attorney in ....
Christians Sent to Prison after Brutal Police Raid    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, January 29 (CDN) — Following a brutal raid on six Christian brothers and their café because they had opened for business during Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, a judge on Jan. 22 sentenced them to three years in prison with hard labor for resisting arrest and ....
Judge Tells of Desire to Kill Christian    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, January 27 (CDN) — After her arrest at Cairo’s airport on Dec. 13 while attempting to flee anti-Christian hostilities in Egypt, convert Martha Samuel Makkar was granted bail on Saturday (Jan. 24), but not before a judge took her aside and said he would like to kill ....
Judge Ejects Lawyer for Christian from Court    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, January 13 (CDN) — An attempt by an Egyptian convert from Islam to legally change the religion listed on his identification card to “Christian” hit a setback on Jan. 6 when a judge ordered security personnel to remove his lawyer from court. Attorney Nabil Ghobreyal ....
Citizen Wins Rare Legal Victory to Revert to Christianity    Published in 2009
ISTANBUL, January 8 (CDN) — An Egyptian convert to Christianity who spent 31 years officially identified as a Muslim has won a rare legal victory to be officially registered in his “new” faith. An Alexandrian administrative court awarded Fathi Labib Yousef the right to ....
 
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