A Coptic Christian has been arrested and held incommunicado for Facebook posts critical of Egypt’s educational policies that rights groups say vilify Christians.
Sherif Wagih Fahmi, an engineer, was arrested Oct. 5 at his home in Alexandria by National Security Agency officers in military vehicles, Coptic Solidarity told Morning Star News.
‘Contempt of Islam’?
He is charged with “contempt of Islam” and is being held in an unknown location, Coptic Solidarity says.
“Religious instruction is compulsory for school-age children in Egypt,” Morning Star reported. “In theory, Christian children are allowed to opt out of Islamic classes, but this rule is often ignored, and Christian children are commonly forced to undergo Islamic education.”
Morning Star added, “Fahmi’s disappearance comes as part of a long-standing and concerted effort by the Egyptian government to intimidate active Christians and those who challenge state denials of anti-Christian persecution on social media.”
As for people who leave Islam and profess faith in Jesus Christ, the Egyptian government also has a practice of indefinitely imprisoning some individuals in an effort to pressure them to recant, said Morning Star.
World Watch List
Egypt is No. 42 on Open Doors’ 2026 World Watch List of the 50 places most difficult to be a Christian.
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