A Christian man and his son were attacked by a 43-year-old Muslim man in Giza, Egypt in the early hours of the morning on 28 July.
Joseph Israel and his son were attacked by Ahmad Mouhammad outside Joseph’s wine shop in Khatam El Morsaleen Street in Omranya. Ahmad reportedly attacked both with a knife before some of Joseph’s Muslim neighbours intervened and beat Ahmad badly. All three are currently in hospital receiving medical treatment for their injuries.
In a post on Facebook, Coptic journalist Nader Shokry suggested that these attacks are the result of hate speech and sectarian incitement by Islamist preachers such as Sheikh Abdullah Rushdy and Sheikh Mabrook Attia.
In recent weeks, Sheikh Attia has appeared in controversial YouTube videos commenting on the murder of university student Naira Ashraf, 21, who was stabbed to death by a male student after rejecting his repeated advances. Sheikh Attia blamed the victim for not wearing a hijab and criticised how she dressed. In another video clip, Sheikh Attia criticised the Sermon on the Mount and mocked the name of Jesus.
According to one of Christian Solidarity Worldwide’s sources, a number of lawyers have filed complaints against Sheikh Attia with Egypt’s Prosecutor General, accusing him of contempt of religion and inciting hate. Article 98 of Egypt’s Penal Code, which pertains to contempt of religion, is consistently used to prosecute Christians but is never employed against Islamist preachers spreading hate speech.
Source: Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CWS)
Please Pray
Pray that Joseph and his son will recover quickly from their injuries, as well as their attacker, Ahmad.
Pray that this attack will raise an opportunity for Joseph’s neighbours to hear the gospel.
Pray that Egyptian believers will forgive and bless their persecutors.