A Coptic Christian, who was arrested for distributing copies of the Bible, recently had his detention extended for the second time along with a new charge being added to his already pending case. Ishaq Medhat, 35, who hails from Beni Obeid in Minya, was arrested at the Mall of Arabia on October 6 last year, after being found guilty of possessing nine copies of the Bible and distributing them among the masses.

Fellow Coptic and journalist Nader Shoukry said that Medhat was initially arrested on grounds of harming national unity and inciting sectarian strife, but later, the charge of insulting religion was added to his case as well. Shoukry also warned that the official police report against Medhat makes no mention of insulting religion.

“They use pre-trial detention as a punishment and therein no reason for his detention; his defense lawyers are calling for his release,” Shoukry said.

Religious freedoms researcher Ishaq Ibrahim, who works for Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, informed the media there is no law in Egypt that criminalizes the act of attempting to convert to another religion. However, Ibrahim also said that Article 98 of Egypt’s Penal Code, which criminalizes the use of religion to harm national unity and social peace or incite sectarian strife, is often misused by the administration to persecute the likes of Medhat. Reportedly, those found guilty of violating Article 98 are either sentenced to prison for up to five years or fined a hefty amount. Unsurprisingly, most of those prosecuted on grounds of insulting religion happen to be Christians or atheists.

Christians constitute approximately 10 percent of Egypt’s population and have often been made to suffer discrimination and marginalization at different levels in society. However, present Coptic Patriarch Pope Tawadros II is believed to have brought the minority group closer to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi’s administration.

Photo Credits: Human Events