Christian Entity Urges Egypt to Enact “policies to counter sectarianism, hate speech”

“We are relieved that Mr. Israel and his son have survived this brutal attack, thanks to the intervention of their Muslim neighbors,” CSW Founder President says. 

The August 1 CSW report indicates that Muslim neighbors rescued Mr. Israel and his son from their attacker. 

Officials of the UK-based Christian entity highlight Sheikh Attia's inciting messages, saying, "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 criticized how she dressed. He had also encouraged women to cover themselves up to avoid attacks," CSW officials say. 

They add that in another clip, Sheikh Attia criticizes the Sermon on the Mount and mocks the name of Jesus.

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CSW officials say a number of lawyers have filed complaints against Sheikh Attia with Egypt’s Prosecutor General, accusing him of "contempt of religion and inciting hate". 

They, however, say that "Article 98 of the Penal Code, which pertains to contempt of religion, is consistently used to persecute Christians and intellectuals, but is never employed against preachers spreading hate speech."

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.