An imprisoned father has declared a hunger strike to protest his two-and-a-half years of detention without trial.
Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo, who has five children, was arrested after he discussed theology with Christian converts in a private Facebook group.
Campaigners for religious freedom are calling for the urgent and safe release of the convert to Christianity, after he wrote to his family—vowing to strike in stages until the strike is “complete,” including turning away healthcare treatment and, eventually, food.
Abdo was arrested by Egyptian authorities in 2021 after participating in a Facebook page supporting people who have converted from Islam to Christianity. He registered previously as a UNHCR asylum seeker in Egypt, death threats received in his home country after he converted to Christianity.
Translated from Arabic, his letter states:
I started today on the 7 of August 2024 a partial strike. And I refuse to take treatment from the person who is responsible for healthcare in the prison. And I requested from him to tell the management in the prison that I am doing so. I am going to increase my strike in stages until I make the strike complete during the coming weeks. And the reason for my strike is that they arrested me without any legal justification. They did not convict me for any violation of the law. And they did not set me free during my remand imprisonment which should have ended 8 months ago.
Egyptian authorities arrested Abdo, along with another Christian named Nour Girgis, after discovering their affiliation with the Facebook page, using it as the basis for spurious terrorism allegations. Both men have seen their criminal trials postponed, while their physical health is reportedly in decline,
Kelsey Zorzi, ADF International’s Director of Advocacy for Global Religious Freedom stated:
Nobody should be imprisoned for expressing their Christian beliefs in a social media post. This devastating cry for help from Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo must not be ignored, and it is past time for Egyptian authorities to release him and Nour Girgis from their unwarranted and unlawful detention. We are utilizing every mechanism available to ensure that both men are released and returned to their families.
The gross human rights violations and injustice perpetrated by the Egyptian authorities in this case are clear and expose how the laws in Egypt are being abused to punish those with minority views and beliefs. Governments across the world are failing to uphold appropriate legal standards for freedom of religion and speech, allowing rampant criminalisation of social media posts and religious practice to go unchecked. Whether in the Middle East, Europe or elsewhere, we must urgently do better to protect basic human rights, and allow each individual to freely hold and express their own beliefs.
