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MAY 2015
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Egypt On the Cross
Orphans remember their martyred father in a meeting with ICC staff
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INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Table of Contents
In This Issue: FEATURE
18 | Christians In Egypt
Discrimination and oppression continue to force many Christians to leave Egypt in order to provide for their families. FEATURE
20 | Egypt Under el-Sisi
Has life improved for Christians under the new leadership of president el-Sisi? FEATURE
22 | To the Nation of the Cross
Families respond to the martyrdom of the 21 young men in Libya and share the stories of their short, faithful lives. ADVOCACY
26 | Nation on the Edge of Hope ICC visits Cairo to meet with policymakers, human rights groups, religious leaders and victims of persecution.
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FEATURE
28 | Christian Kidnappings
The kidnapping and exploitation of Christian men, women and children is reaching epidemic proportions. FEATURE
30 | Remember the Prisoners
ICC is advocating on behalf of Bishoy Boulous, who has been imprisoned for his attempts to legally convert from Islam to Christianity. Regular Features
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3 Letter from the President A few words from ICC’s president, Jeff King. 6 World News A snapshot of the persecution that impacts our brothers and sisters daily, in every corner of the world. 10 West Watch A look at recent news reflecting growing opposition to Christianity in the United States and the Western world. 12 Your Dollars at Work Learn how your gifts are providing comfort, relief, Bibles, education and new business ventures to the persecuted.
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27 MAY 2015
President’s Letter
Two rows of men walked the shore of the sea, On a day when the world’s tears would run free, One a row of assassins, who thought they did right, The other of innocents, true sons of the light, One row stood steady, pall-bearers of death, The other knelt ready, welcoming heaven’s breath, A Question …
This snippet from George Shady’s poem (full poem on the next page) so perfectly lays out the spiritual battle that is expressed on earth and finds its center in the Middle East and Egypt.
Jeff King, President International Christian Concern
Hell’s forces have broken through the front lines and captured huge swathes of territory. The old order lies in ruins. The ground smolders and is stained in blood. As we survey the battlefield and look to Egypt, we find so much cause for hope in the future and yet we still despair in the present. In Egypt, after scheming and maneuvering for 70 years, the Muslim Brotherhood gained power. They immediately began to flesh out their plans to turn Egypt into a radical Islamic State. They installed their Islamic radicals into the judicial and legislative branches of government and went after the Press as well. The good news? The Islamic populace quickly threw them out on the street. The Islamic world is getting wiser and doesn’t want to be ruled by radicals. They look to Iran and want no part of life under the Mullahs. Egypt’s new president has made some unprecedented statements and political moves in support of Christians. The bad news is that Egypt sill terribly persecutes its Christian population and they are leaving in droves. So while the battle rages, please join us as we fight with and for them, as we bandage them and help those that stay to build His Church. As always, your donations will be used efficiently, effectively, and ethically. I promise! Jeff King
President, International Christian Concern www.persecution.org
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“Two Rows” A poem by Dr. Shady George in response to the brutal execution of 21 Egyptian Christians by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Libya in February 2015.
Two rows of men walked the shore of the sea, On a day when the world’s tears would run free, One a row of assassins, who thought they did right, The other of innocents, true sons of the light, One holding knives in hands held high, The other with hands empty, defenseless and tied, One row of slits to conceal glaring-dead eyes, The other with living eyes raised to the skies, One row stood steady, pall-bearers of death, The other knelt ready, welcoming heaven’s breath, One row spewed wretched, contemptible threats, The other spread God-given peace and rest. A Question … Who fears the other? The row in orange, watching paradise open? Or the row in black, with minds evil and broken?
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MAY 2015
Romany Aziz
The brother of Mina Fayez Aziz, one of the 21 Coptic Christians martyred in Libya, shared this photo of his brother with ICC during a meeting with the martyrs’ families in Egypt. Photo: ICC
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News
Modi Speaks in Support of Christians
1 | UNITED STATES On February 20, Rabbi David Saperstein was sworn in as the new ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom at the U.S. State Department. The post is the highest in the U.S. government tasked with promoting the right to religious freedom in nations around the world and has been empty for nearly 15 months after the previous ambassador, Suzanne Johnson Cook, resigned in 2013. Ambassador Saperstein is the first non-Christian to hold the post and faces a daunting array of issues, from widespread persecution of religious minorities by Islamic militants in the Middle East to ongoing restrictions on religious freedom in nations like North Korea, China and Vietnam. Ambassador Saperstein will oversee about 20 staff at the International Religious Freedom Office in the State Department and will use a wide range of diplomatic tools to encourage foreign governments to halt persecution and protect the right to freedom of religion.
2 | INDIA After months of being called upon to speak out against growing religious intolerance in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has finally broken his silence. Modi vowed that he would protect religious freedom in India and would not allow any religious group to incite hatred along religious lines. Many Christians in India have been waiting for this moment for months and were pleasantly surprised to see Modi speak out for religious freedom and tolerance in India. The prime minister’s speech followed a meeting with Christian leaders in which Christians were able to voice their concerns over rising religious intolerance and violence against India’s religious minorities. The prime minister agreed to meet with the leaders after a string of attacks on churches and Christian institutions in New Delhi led Christians to protest in the streets. The European Union’s (E.U.) ambassador to India has welcomed Prime Minister Modi’s speech upholding religious tolerance in India. At the same time, the E.U. ambassador noted that the remarks made by the prime minister were “unremarkable” in that they were entirely in line with what is said in the Indian constitution. Hindu radical groups have spoken out against the prime minister’s speech, claiming that Modi actually intended to admonish Christians.
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ICC welcomes Rabbi David Saperstein to his post as the new religious freedom ambassador.
New Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
Death Toll Rises as Syrian Conflict Enters Fifth Year 3 | SYRIA As the Syrian conflict enters its fifth year, more than 220,000 people are believed to have been killed, and Christians and other religious minorities continue to be targets of specific attacks. The protests following the detention of 15 children arrested for writing pro-democracy graffiti have resulted in one of the most brutal conflicts in recent history, and the death toll continues to rise. Militant Islamic jihadists have streamed into the country, fighting not just against the brutality of Bashar al-Assad, but also to establish an Islamic state. As the February abduction of more than 250 Assyrian Christians demonstrated, Syria’s Christian community and other ethnic or religious minorities are being explicitly targeted and killed or driven into Lebanon and other surrounding areas. For those who have fled, their daily survival is dependent on aid from others.
MAY 2015
American Missionary Kidnapped in Nigeria Released 4 | NIGERIA Two weeks after American missionary Phyllis Sortor was kidnapped in central Nigeria, she was released into the care of her church. Shortly after her disappearance at the hands of masked gunmen, her captors issued a ransom demand of $300,000 — a demand her family was unable to afford. Although Christians in Nigeria have been heavily persecuted by Boko Haram in the last two years, the radical Islamist terrorist group is not responsible for this abduction.
Christians Fearful in Weeks Leading up to Presidential Election in Nigeria
Iranian Pastor Released
Turkmenistan Authorities Order Christians to Recant Faith
5 | NIGERIA Christians in Nigeria fled their homes to seek safety as the national election date loomed closer. Their fears were not unfounded. Northern Nigeria’s radical Muslim terror group, Boko Haram, is acting more and more like the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), beheading victims and releasing videos broadcasting these barbarous acts. Boko Haram continues to target Christian populations in northern Nigeria, and regional analysts anticipate increased levels of persecution of our Christian brothers and sisters as the terror group has aligned themselves with ISIS.
6 | IRAN Iranian Pastor Rasoul Abdollahi was released from prison after being held for more than one year in Iran. Originally arrested in 2010, the pastor had been free on bail until December 2013, when he was once again held in custody until his recent release. He is a leader among house churches in Iran, a country which regularly imprisons Christians who meet together to worship in Persian.
7 | TURKMENISTAN A group of Christians gathering together in Turkmenistan had their meeting interrupted by an illegal raid by authorities. As the police searched the house top to bottom, looking for contraband, they came across a New Testament. The Christians who had gathered there reported they were afraid the homeowner would face two weeks in prison for owning the religious book. The police questioned the believers and ordered them to recant their faith. The homeowner was directed by police to openly recant his faith inside a mosque.
Churches burned in wake of Nigeria’s 2011 election.
Christian ordered to recant faith inside a mosque.
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News
1 | PAKISTAN Pakistani police have been accused of torturing a young Christian man to death in March. Police arrested the young Christian, along with other family members, after his mother, Ayesha Bibi, was accused of stealing gold worth over $350 from her Muslim employer — a charge she adamantly denies. One evening, police arrived at Bibi’s home with her employer to make the accusation of theft and began ransacking her home. Reports indicate that police then detained Bibi and forcibly took her to her brother’s home, where he lived with Bibi’s two sons. While at her brother’s house, police reportedly allowed Bibi’s employer to severely beat her before finally taking all of her family members into custody for interrogation. Once at the police station, the Pakistani authorities are believed to have employed violence and torture against the family during hours of questioning and interrogating Bibi and her family members.
Eventually, police released Bibi and all of her family members, with the exception of her 20-year-old son, Zubair Masih. While in police custody, reports indicate that Masih was violently tortured throughout the night. His mother and family spent that night in fear for the young man’s life, knowing very well the Pakistani government’s history of violence, particularly against Christians. The next morning, the family’s fears were realized when Bibi found her son’s battered and lifeless body left in a heap at her front door. Doctors who later examined the body said they believe Masih likely died of his injuries while still in police custody. As a minority in Pakistan, Christians like Bibi are often falsely accused. Police use torture as a policing and interrogation tactic. Tragically, suspects dying while in police custody is not an uncommon occurrence in Pakistan.
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Parents buried their 20-year-old son after police tortured him and left his lifeless body at their door.
Pakistani Police Torture Christian Youth, Leave Body at Parents’ Door
INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONCERN
“For decades they have been starved, enslaved and killed.” Sudan’s Religious War on its Citizens 2 | SUDAN According to a Christian think tank, the campaign against Christians in Sudan is continuing with no indication of stopping in the near future. Reports indicate that thousands of bombs have targeted churches, individuals and schools within the past few years in the process of committing genocide against religious minorities. Faith McDonnell of the Institute on Religion and Democracy has challenged the United States to speak out more against the atrocities taking place against Christians and other minorities in Sudan, a nation whose government McDonnell says acts with impunity. Currently, the U.S. government is not involved in any known dialogue with the Sudanese government regarding freedom of belief or religion. “The slaughter of Christians and other minority communities by ISIS has awakened many Christians to persecution of the global Church,” McDonnell said. “Sudan’s Christians and other marginalized peoples are also under attack. For decades they have been starved, enslaved and killed. Churches, schools and hospitals are bombed regularly by the Islamist government.” McDonnell credits the increasing levels of persecution with inaction on the part of Western nations. “The weak response of the U.S. government and the world community to [Sudan’s] genocidal actions have emboldened it into believing that no one cares enough to stop them,” McDonnell said. MAY 2015
Egypt’s President Visits Cathedral in Unprecedented Move to Commemorate Martyrs 3 | EGYPT The day following the release of a video showing the execution of 21 Christians in Libya, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi visited St. Mark’s Cathedral in Cairo to show his support for the families of those martyred. President el-Sisi made history on January 6 when he became the first president to visit the cathedral for the Christmas Eve Mass. He greeted them as “Egyptians” with full rights — a positive step in a country deeply divided on religious lines and where Christians are often considered second-class citizens.
As Christians in India protest rising levels of persecution, a radical Hindu leader is vowing to continue attacking churches.
Three Chinese Christians, arrested while attempting to keep police from dismantling their church’s cross, have been released.
Radicals Say Attacks on Christians to Continue
Three Chinese Christians Released from Prison
4 | INDIA A radical Hindu nationalist leader in India has vowed that attacks on churches would continue as long as Hindus were being converted to Christianity. His comments came on the heels of the gang rape of a 75-year-old nun and the destruction of several Christian churches. Religious intolerance has continued to escalate under the new prime minister and his BJP-led government. Many feared that when BJP took power in May 2014, attacks on India’s religious minorities would increase. Unfortunately, they were right.
5 | CHINA Three wrongly arrested Chinese Christians from Wenzhou, in China’s Zhejiang province, have been released from detention. The three men were arrested during a crackdown on churches in Wenzhou when more than 420 churches were either demolished or had their crosses forcibly removed from their buildings. The Christians, who were guarding the cross on their church building from destruction, were charged with “gathering a crowd to disrupt public order” and “obstructing official business.” During their detention, they reportedly refused to sign statements admitting to any guilt and were finally acquitted.
Double Suicide Bombings Decimate Churches 6 | PAKISTAN Christian leaders in Pakistan called for peace following the bombing of two churches in Lahore in March. During funerals amid tight security, Christians mourned the losses their community sustained when Taliban militants attacked two churches with suicide vests on Sunday during worship services. Seventeen people were killed in the attacks, and another 70 were injured. Christians in Lahore took to the streets in protest. Unfortunately, the protests quickly turned violent. Christians in Pakistan are often targeted by extremist groups because of the lack of security given to their places of worship. Justice is rarely given to the Christian community following incidents like this.
Broken glass from the bombing litters the ground.
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est atch Student Defends Right To Recite ‘Under God’ in Pledge
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ew Jersey student Samantha Jones won a major victory for religious freedom in her high school after the phrase from the pledge of allegiance, “under God,” came under attack in February 2014. When an anonymous family sued the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District, claiming that including the phrase was discriminatory, Jones decided to fight back to protect her rights. The family was represented by the American Humanist Association while Jones was represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
The school district avoided the majority of the controversy by claiming that they were merely adhering to the state law which requires schools to recite the pledge daily. In conclusion, State Superior Court Judge Bauman decided that there was no evidence to support the notion that those who filed the lawsuit were “bullied, ostracized or in any way mistreated.” Both the historical roots of the phrase, “under God,” as well as the fact that no students were forced to recite the pledge, contributed to Jones’s victory.
Atheist Group Forces Removal of Memorial Cross for Teacher
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fter middle school teacher Joanne Christy tragically lost her life in a car accident in 2004, her family and friends decided to create a memorial in honor of her life. The tribute was a small memorial garden which featured a cross with Scripture written on it and was located near one of
Christian Grandmother in Washington Could Lose Everything for Faith
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n early 2013, florist Barronelle Stutzman of Arlene’s Flowers was approached by two men requesting floral arrangements for their same-sex wedding. Stutzman politely refused to provide for the wedding due to her beliefs. After one of the men posted about the incident on Facebook, the matter drew national controversy with strong opinions both against and in favor of Stutzman. The state of Washington’s attorney general’s office, as well as the couple, chose to sue Stutzman and the business for her refusal to provide flowers. In February 2015, a judge ruled against the florist stating that she violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws and would be held personally responsible, meaning that she could potentially lose her home and life savings. Stutzman has since rejected a settlement offer, stating that taking the offer and denying her beliefs would be comparable to Judas’ betrayal of Jesus.
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the entrances of the school where Christy taught. However, her family and friends were unaware of the controversy that would soon follow because of the memorial. A parent of one of the students at the school later contacted the atheist legal group Freedom from Religion Foundation in order to file an official complaint. The organization then sent a letter to the West Virginia school board demanding the removal of the cross. Though the school board allowed the family to keep the garden in place, they forced the family to remove any blatantly religious imagery such as the crosses and Bible verses. The reasoning behind the removal of the cross was that the presence of religious symbolism on public school grounds was unconstitutional.
International Outcry Saves 350 UK Missionaries from Deportation
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n January 2015, over 350 missionaries with the organization Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and their families faced the threat of deportation from the UK. Though YWAM initially made mistakes in two areas which were audited, they immediately took the appropriate actions to correct the errors. However, they were then informed that their visa sponsor status was being suspended for reasons unrelated to the original inspection and threatened with a forced exit from the country. After facing international outcry, UK Visas and Immigration decided to restore YWAM’s visa sponsorship license. Youth
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With A Mission hopes to meet with other Christian organizations as well as government leaders in order to explain the difficulties that they faced and help others avoid a similar situation in the future.
MAY 2015
Arizona Restrictions on Church Signs Reach Supreme Court
Florida Group Counters Bible Distribution with “Fact Books” on Satanic Worship
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n February 10th, the Orange County School Board in Florida voted to prohibit the distribution of Bibles and any other religiously affiliated materials in their schools. The decision was made after The Satanic Temple attempted to pass out Satanic-themed fact sheets and coloring books to students. The Satanic Temple decided to do so after noticing that a Christian organization, World Changers of Florida, was offering Bibles to students. In the 7 to 1 vote, the school board decided to edit the board’s policy by forbidding the distribution of all religious materials. The spokesperson for The Satanic Temple, Lucien Greaves, stated on the group’s website that it would be irresponsible not to offer various religious perspectives rather than having one dominant group “deliver[ing] propaganda to youth.” World Changers of Florida is being represented by the The Liberty Counsel. The Christian legal group is considering a lawsuit. Though this incident was not necessarily aimed directly at Christians, it demonstrates the resistance faced by Christian groups attempting to work with the public school system in the United States.
New Jersey Police Ticket Resident for Displaying Scripture Verses Without an Advertising Permit
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n August 2014, New Jersey resident Luis Zapata found himself in the middle of a legal battle surrounding a poster he had fastened to his truck. Zapata stated that two years prior to the lawsuit, he felt led by God to preach the Gospel on the streets. He then decided to attach two signs to his truck, which displayed the words of John 8:24 as well as Numbers 32:23, hoping people would read the signs as he drove around his town. According to reports, a police officer approached Zapata and told him he had to remove the posters because he did not have a permit. The officer then left and returned with another officer. The pair proceeded to write Zapata a ticket, citing an ordinance requiring “temporary permits for advertising on vehicles” as the ticket’s justification. The prosecutor’s refusal to drop the case holds many implications for religious free speech in the United States. The ability to legally categorize posters containing Scripture verses as “advertisements” could potentially lead to greater restrictions on the rights of individuals as well as churches to express their faith in the public sphere.
fter filing a lawsuit in 2008 against a municipal law, Good News Community Church of Gilbert, Arizona, is taking their case to the Supreme Court. Due to the city’s sign ordinance, the church was forbidden from displaying directional signs on public roadways more than twelve hours prior to their services and no more than one hour after services ended. Due to the fact that their church service started at 9:00 in the morning, the earliest that they could put up the advertisements for their Sunday services would be 9:00 p.m., which would severely limit the number of those who would see the signs. The new regulations proved especially troublesome due to the fact that most political and ideological signs do not have any comparable regulations and time restrictions that they must follow. On behalf of the church, the Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom has since appealed the case to the United States Supreme Court.
Atlanta Fire Chief Fired for Views on Homosexuality
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evin Cochran spent his childhood dreaming about the day he would become a firefighter. This year, the Atlanta fire chief was forced to watch his career crumble after authoring a devotional book. In one section of the book, Cochran briefly mentioned his opinions on homosexuality and stated his belief that marriage is intended for a man and a woman. When Cochran was accused of distributing the book to staff, Atlanta’s mayor, Kasim Reed, condemned Cochran on his official Facebook page and suspended him without pay. Cochran was subsequently fired. In February 2015, Alliance Defending Freedom filed a lawsuit against the city of Atlanta and Mayor Reed on behalf of Cochran. Although an internal investigation conducted by city officials concluded Cochran was innocent of discrimination, the city upheld his termination.
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Your Dollar$ at Work Restocking Libraries Destroyed in Niger Protests
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Bibles to the Persecuted
ver a single weekend in January, as many as 90 churches, Christian homes and Christian businesses were burned to the ground across Niger by Muslim protesters. This destruction was unleashed upon Niger’s Christians because of a depiction of the Prophet Mohammed in the Charlie Hebdo publication based in Paris, France. When the dust settled, dozens, if not hundreds, of Christians were left homeless and afraid. In the immediate aftermath of these destructive riots, ICC was put in communication with a ministry located in Niamey, Niger’s capital, called Reaching Unreached Nations. As a result of the riots, three Bibles schools operated by Reaching Unreached Nations had been set on fire and almost completely destroyed. Along with the school structures, Bibles, Christian teaching materials and other important Christian literature were destroyed. Through ICC’s Bible fund, in partnership with Reaching Unreached Nations, ICC has helped restock the libraries that were destroyed. This investment in Christian literature will be extremely important as the Gospel is advanced in a 97 percent Muslim country. “The rebuild following the attacks is in full swing,” Reaching Unreached Nations said in an update to ICC. “We thank God for all those who have responded by praying and giving. Our Bible schools are in full swing and it’s a joy to see lives changing.” “We are confident that this ‘event’ will go down in history as the weekend that caused the church in Niger to explode,” Reaching Unreached Nations added. “There is momentum now, and we must keep building on that.” ICC is encouraging its donors to continue to pray for the Christian community of Niger as they recover from the riots. Although much of the violence has abated, tensions in Niger remain high between Christian and Muslim communities. Pray for continued safety and recovery.
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MAY 2015
Providing for Pastors in Aftermath Underground Pastors
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n January, Christian pastors across Niger came under attack when mobs of Muslims targeted churches and Christian institutions for destruction in response to a depiction of the Prophet Mohammad in the Charlie Hebdo publication. Many pastors across Niger lost everything — their churches, homes and personal belongings. Through ICC’s Underground Pastors fund, ICC has already provided assistance to 10
pastors and their families who were affected by these riots. In an effort to meet their immediate needs, ICC provided these pastors with food, water and blankets. Pastor Remy and his family (below) were among the Christians that received aid from ICC. The family received rice, maize, beans and cooking oil in the immediate aftermath of the riots. “We feel an overflowing sense of joy and gratefulness for receiving all of these gifts,” Pastor Remy told ICC. “The help came at a period when we were in much need. We are truly thankful to ICC.”
Restoring Water and Electricity
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Underground Pastors
n January 17, Pastor Z’s church and home were attacked by a mob of Muslims enraged by the publication of the Prophet Mohammed’s image in France. Along with dozens of other Christian pastors, Pastor Z’s church and home were set on fire. The church was completely destroyed, but Pastor Z’s home was only damaged. Although Pastor Z’s home was still intact, much of his personal property had been destroyed, including the home’s utility hook-ups. Through ICC’s Underground Pastors fund, ICC was able to repair these hook-ups, bringing both electricity and water back to Pastor Z’s home. “Pastor Z and his family moved back into their home just this week,” ICC’s partners reported in early March. “Much of what they lost has already been replaced!” Despite the simplicity of this project, it was important because it allowed Pastor Z and his family, including his pregnant wife and three children, to move back into their own home.
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Your Dollar$ at Work
Caring for the Martyrs’ Families
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Suffering Wives & Children
rom the time the Coptic Christians were abducted in Libya in late December and early January, ICC was working with their families. Through ICC’s local staff around the world, we often walk with families through some of life’s most difficult times. Sometimes assistance is expensive and long-lasting, but other times it is just a visit to sit and pray with a hurting family to remind them they are not alone. A small package of food can let them know we are thinking of them and are willing to help. As we visited the families of each of the 20 Coptic Christians who were martyred in Libya, this was their response: “We thank ICC so much for asking about us, visiting us, praying with us, comforting us, encouraging us and bringing food packages for us. We appreciate that so much. Thank you for your genuine love to us.”
Helping a Pastor Heal
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Hand of Hope
n December 2013, Pastor Moses’ wife answered a knock at their door in the middle of the night, unaware that Hindu radicals with murder in their hearts were waiting on the other side. When she opened the door, the radicals rushed into their home and attempted to kill both Pastor Moses and his wife. After stabbing the couple multiple times, the radicals abandoned the injured Christians. By God’s grace, both Pastor Moses and his wife survived this brutal assault, but not without consequences. Since the attack, Pastor Moses’ health has suffered. Due to the injuries he sustained, he has had to undergo several medical operations and treatments. For a rural pastor in India, this would normally be impossible to afford. Through ICC’s Hand of Hope: South Asia fund, ICC has been able to provide for Pastor Moses’ medical treatment. The road to full recovery will likely be long, but ICC and its donors are committed to seeing Pastor Moses fully restored.
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MAY 2015
Your Dollar$ at Work
Warm Coats for Printing Press A New Shop in Displaced Iraqis Provides Bibles Libya’s Market
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Community Rebuild
ince June 2014, your gifts have allowed us to serve thousands of displaced Iraqi men, women and children. What started in the Iraqi summer heat with needs for water and shelter from the brutal sun turned into a cold winter for the nearly 200,000 Iraqi Christians who had been driven out of their homes. With your help, we were able to provide truly life-saving assistance to many this winter. One of the children you helped rescue was 9-year-old Isra. Months ago, Isra was jolted awake by pounding on her door in the middle of the night. ISIS had broken through her town’s defense and was bearing down on her home. Isra and her family were displaced in a matter of minutes. With nothing but the pajamas on her back and sandals on her feet, Isra ran out the door. After walking for almost two days, her family found a place to rest inside an abandoned classroom. That’s where you come into the story. Thanks to your gifts, we were able to give Isra, her family and hundreds more warm winter clothing, boots, blankets, heaters and the fuel they needed to survive a bitterly cold winter.
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Bibles to the Persecuted
n 2013, a pastor in the Middle East wrote to ICC about the incredible need for God’s Word in his country, stating, “Before 1996, there were very few Christians, but now thousands of Muslims are coming to Christ and the number is increasing day by day.” For the continued growth of healthy churches, they needed access to God’s Word and other Christian literature. Carrying in a few Bibles at a time is dangerous and insufficient. Restrictions on outside shipments made ordering the Bibles difficult, and no local printers would print enough to meet the needs. With the partnership of many, ICC established a printing press that is now up and running and providing increased access to Scripture for the thousands of new believers. In just the first four weeks of operation, 15,000 copies of Gospel portions were printed — more than half of what the church had been able to obtain before in an entire year. We are excited about the many strategic opportunities that are now available for the believers in this country to have unprecedented access to God’s life-changing Word.
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Suffering Wives & Children
amal was working in Libya to help take care of his family. He was on his way home to Egypt in August 2014 when his bus was stopped by Islamic extremists. He and three other Christians were forced out of the bus. At gunpoint, the militants forced the driver to drive away. That was the last Gamal’s wife ever heard from her husband or the other two men. There has been no word of their death and no demand for a ransom. With your help, ICC helped Gamal’s wife, Manal, purchase clothing that she and her father can sell from a stand at the daily markets. “I thank ICC so much for calling us, always asking about us, encouraging us, visiting us and making this project for us,” Manal said. “This project has helped us to overcome our bad circumstances. It has helped us to make income to meet the physical needs for me and my children. May God bless you. Thank you so much, ICC.” Her greater request is something that all Christians can do: “I ask ICC to continue praying for the return of my husband.”
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Your Dollar$ at Work
Working for Peanuts: A Microbusiness Producing Peanut Butter Helps Support Evangelism Efforts
To help support Muslim-background believers, who are often cut off financially when they leave Islam, ICC is supporting a peanut butter producing business in Bangladesh that is run by recent Christian converts from Islam.
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Underground Pastors
angladesh is a Muslim-majority country where it remains difficult to effectively evangelize the country’s Muslim population. Among the more difficult challenges is the financial and social consequences many Christian converts from Muslim backgrounds face due to their conversion. In many cases, these converts are cut off both socially and financially. Conversion can mean losing a job and losing a family all in a single day. To help meet this challenge, ICC has partnered with local ministries in Bangladesh
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to initiate small, income-generating projects that can be used to help support recent Christian converts from Islam. Through ICC’s Underground Pastors fund, ICC was able to provide assistance for a small business run by several recent converts to Christianity. The business produces peanut butter. Below is the testimony of one convert benefiting from this Peanut Butter Project: “My name is Omar. I was born and brought up in a Muslim family in Bangladesh. I heard the Gospel for the first time in 2012. I had a lot of questions about Jesus and Mohammed and attended some Christian discussions in 2013 and then accepted Jesus as my Lord and
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Savior.” “This February, I decided to help out with an outreach ministry, but I did not have any financial support for my own food and living expenses. One day, a pastor proposed to me to work with the Peanut Butter Project. I agreed and started work with this project. I thank God for the Peanut Butter Project. So far, I got 2,900 taka ($39 USD) in just one month and one week.” “My family would not help me financially. They don’t want me to be able to do mission work. The Peanut Butter Project gave me confidence that, as a Bangladeshi missionary, I could earn and do mission work.” MAY 2015
Your Dollar$ at Work
Martyr’s Widow Finds Success Running Lumber Business
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Suffering Wives & Children
n August 2013, Janet’s husband was brutally killed by a mob of extremists in southern Egypt. ICC partnered with the local church to meet her immediate needs after the house was destroyed and Janet was forced to live at the church. We didn’t stop there. With your help, we wanted Janet to be able to care for her family and her future. ICC helped her establish a small business distributing lumber in her city.
After more than a year, the company continues to grow and she is known to the majority of her village as the primary source for lumber. She continues to reinvest in the business and earn an income. “My project is very good now, and I’m able to earn good money from it,” Janet said. “I thank ICC so much for helping me start this project. This has helped me to spend my time in a useful thing, to feel the value of myself and make a monthly income to meet my living expenses.”
Encouragement to Overcome
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Suffering Wives & Children
abil Mahrous Ibrahim was one of the few Christians still living in Egypt’s South Sinai region early this year. In the early morning of January 31, five Islamic extremists entered into his home, killed Nabil in front of his children and robbed the family before disappearing into the dark of the early morning. ICC met with Inas, the wife of Nabil Mahrous, just a few days after the attack. “I and my three sons thank ICC so much for visiting us, praying with us and encouraging us to overcome our adversity,” Nabil said. “Thank you for bringing a food package to us and giving us help. We appreciate that so much. We ask ICC to continue praying for us. May God bless you.” A visit to pray and care for a grieving family in the days following an incident is often just the first step of helping them through an incident of persecution. ICC’s Suffering Wives and Children fund is used to help meet both the immediate and long-term needs of suffering families.
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CHRISTIANS IN EGYPT SEEK EXODUS FROM OPPRESSION Despite a glimmer of hope in a new government, discrimination, oppression and persecution continue to force many Christians, like the 21 martyred in Libya, to leave in order to provide for their families.
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n February 15, a video was released showing 21 men in orange jumpsuits being led along a beach in Libya where they were brutally executed by Islamist jihadists who had sworn allegiance to ISIS. Twenty of the men were Egyptian Coptic Christians who had traveled to work in Libya. While the world was rightly shocked by the brutality of the martyrdom of these Christians, a hidden part of the story is why these men would make the choice to leave their families behind and travel to Libya where they faced such risks. Life as a Christian in Egypt had led these men to risk their lives because they felt there was no other means of providing for their families. As Christians from Upper Egypt, generations of discrimination, oppression and lack of education have left the community underdeveloped and struggling just for the basic provisions of life. It is not just economic hardships that make life difficult for Egyptian Christians. Violent attacks from Islamic extremists, government restrictions on Christians and hostility from a society deeply divided along religious lines all define life for Christians in Egypt.
A Country in Transition, Christians as Targets Egypt’s Christian population is the largest in the Middle East: about 8 million, or 10 percent of the population. Many Christians have left the country as a result of political turmoil and repeated attacks over the past four years.
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Since 2011, Egypt has gone through a period of massive political upheaval. In January 2011, Egyptians took to the streets and brought an end to the 30-year government of President Hosni Mubarak. In a totally predictable but worst-case scenario, the Muslim Brotherhood filled the power gap, and in June 2012, their candidate, Mohammed Morsi, was elected president. What followed was one of the toughest periods for Christians in Egyptian history. Morsi’s government very quickly set about to further Islamize the country, placing extremists into government positions and strengthening ties with Islamist groups across the region. Over the months following Morsi’s election, Christians saw their tenuous place in society grow even shakier. This threat was felt by the populace as a whole, and after one year in power, in June 2013, tens of millions of Egyptians flooded the streets to bring down Morsi’s government. The Brotherhood had waited 70 years to gain power, and when the populace threw them out, they unleashed their fury — particularly against Christians. It was one of the worst periods for Egyptian Christians in over 2,000 years. Coordinated attacks across the country were launched against churches, schools, Christian-owned businesses and homes. The overall destruction was staggering. More than 60 churches were destroyed, along with dozens of schools and monasteries, and more than 200 businesses, homes and vehicles were torched. In 2014, the populace voted overwhelmingly to elect Abdel el-Sisi, then commander-inchief of the armed forces, as president. Since he assumed office, restoring security and protection for all Egyptians has been a primary concern. After enduring withering attacks for three years, most Christians welcomed el-Sisi
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Egypt in Photos Top Left Christians sort and manage
Cairo’s waste and recycling in what is known as “Garbage City.” Ostracized by Egyptian society, the Christians who are born and raised in this community often never know any other life or career.
Top Right This church is being con-
structed to commemorate the lives of the seven Egyptian Christians who were executed in Libya in February 2014, prior to the death of the 21. Unfortunately, a lawsuit has been opened to prevent it.
Bottom Left The family of the seven killed in Libya in February 2014 show the cross on their wrists, a tattoo most Copts wear as an outward symbol of their faith. Bottom Right The charred remains of the Evangelical Church of Malawi after it was burned by Morsi supporters in 2013. with open arms. He has turned out to be a masterful politician and has garnered massive support among Christians through tactful political moves and statements. On January 6, in an unprecedented move, el-Sisi visited St. Mark Cathedral (essentially the Vatican for Orthodox Christians) during the Christmas Eve Mass. In a brief greeting, he addressed the discrimination against Christians as second-class citizens. “We must not call ourselves anything other than ‘Egyptians.’ This is what we must be — Egyptians, just Egyptians, Egyptians, indeed! I just want to tell you that, Allah willing, we shall build our nation together, accommodate and make room for each other, and we shall like each other and love each other in earnest so that people may see,” el-Sisi said. MAY 2015
The president’s declaration was unprecedented and floored the Christian community. Next, the president addressed the Al-Azhar University, the Harvard of Islamic education and theology in the Middle East. Speaking to the Grand Sheikh and leaders of Al-Azhar, el-Sisi said radical Islam “is hostile to the entire world. Is it conceivable that 1.6 billion [Muslims] would kill the world’s population of seven billion, so that they could live [on their own]? This is inconceivable.” These amazing political moves and bold statements are beyond encouraging, but the changes necessary for Muslims and Christians to live together will require far more. Major legal reforms must be made and effective security must be implemented for Christians. The tensions between Muslims and Christians
that manifest themselves in nearly every aspect of life have to be addressed.
Can Real Change Happen?
Two of the most pressing legal issues that affect the rights of Egypt’s Christian community involve church construction and blasphemy laws. For a church to be built, ten extensive requirements must be met, including a presidential decree. As intended, in dozens of villages throughout Egypt, Christians have nowhere to worship. To even repair a church requires government approval. An article in the new constitution requires Egypt’s new parliament take up this issue in its first session to guarantee “the freedom to practice religious rituals for Christians.” Despite the require-
ment, what will actually be accomplished is yet to be seen. Egypt’s laws criminalizing blasphemy are disproportionately applied against Christians. Changing ones religion on an ID card (Bishoy Armia Boulous), teaching about the history of religions in Egypt (Demyana Abd al-Nour) or liking a Christian Facebook page (Kerolos Shouky Attallah) have all resulted in blasphemy convictions in Egypt. In each of these cases, the culture is as much at fault as the laws on the books. More than the law must be changed. Society and culture must change, and that is a slow process (consider civil rights history in the United States). There are reasons to hope things are improving for Christians, but reform will require massive cultural and societal changes.
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Egypt
Under el-Sisi
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Have things changed for the better for Egypt’s Christians?
his question followed us everywhere on ICC’s trip to Egypt in early 2015. Since our previous visit, the country had elected el-Sisi, a former army commander, as president after throwing out the Muslim Brotherhood from power. The situation had become more stable, but not much had changed for the Christians.
Because He’s a Christian
Our Egypt staff told us of a conversation he had with a Coptic priest. Just the night before, Nabil Ibrahim, 50 and a father of three, was murdered in his home in front of his wife and two young children by five masked men because he was a Christian. This was a quick reminder that while Egypt may be on the path toward greater political stability, the massive persecution of Christians remains mostly the same. The extremist groups and the restrictive laws directed at Christians are far from gone. Nevertheless, God continues to do an amazing work, and His church is growing. Our trip would bring us face to face with both sides of this story.
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Persecution and Poverty We traveled to two areas where we met with victims, church leaders and even the police. These two areas are the second and third highest locations for abductions of Christians. While we were able to travel without issue on the first day, a police escort (above) provided added security on our second day, reminding us that the police have been ineffective in providing protection to Christians in Egypt. We met with a church leader whose church came under attack in 2013. He shared with us the reality of life under persecution. “Persecution happens in violent attacks on churches or abductions, but also every day in the market and schools. We have to change the culture before actions will change. Until that happens, the silent exodus of Christians will continue. Every week it is another man or another family that leaves. No one knows the exact numbers,” he lamented. While some look for better opportunities in Cairo or the West, many from Upper Egypt go to Libya for jobs; increasingly, that trip is ending in heartbreak. The world awoke to this reality with the execution of the 21 Coptic Christians in Libya. We met for the second time with the families of seven men executed in Libya in February 2014 and with the families of four men abducted in August 2014. The pain in the eyes of their wives and children was heartwrenching. There has been no word on the fate of their loved ones; they hope for the best, but know that they, too, have probably been killed. These were poignant reminders that our work has to involve bandaging the body of Christ after attacks, but also building the church where it faces persecution.
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ICC meets with the lawyer representing a wrongly imprisoned Christian in Egypt.
Persecution: On Record We met with church leaders, human rights activists, lawyers and government officials fighting for the rights of Christians who have been accused of blasphemy for simply liking the wrong page on Facebook, who have been arrested for wanting to build a church or who have had a loved one abducted and killed. Our work on the ground helping victims gives us authority when we address issues that need change in conversations with the U.S. government, but a missing component in addressing persecution in Egypt is the collecting and warehousing of the data regarding incidents of persecution so that their suffering is known in Egypt, in Washington, D.C. and around the world. We help the victims, tell their stories and press for change that will make a difference in the lives of millions of Egyptian Christians. Have things changed for the better? We are working to make sure they will. MAY 2015
Silent Exodus of Christians During our trip to Egypt, ICC met with church leaders in one of the most difficult parts of Egypt, where kidnappings and violent attacks against Christians are common. One leader’s church was damaged by a mob in August 2013. Concerned about what he calls a “silent exodus” of Christians from Egypt, he is passionate about seeing the culture change so his people no longer face the threats that drive so many to leave Egypt.
“Yes, we are Christians” A member of ICC’s staff stands with an Egyptian brother who narrowly escaped death in Libya. He was working in Libya when Islamic militants came to the door asking whether he and his family were Christians. He was dragged outside, but when the militants were distracted, he pushed away and escaped. The next morning, the bodies of his father, two brothers-in-law and four others were found. They’d been executed for answering, “Yes, we are Christians.”
A New Faith, New Skills One of ICC’s partners works with Muslimbackground believers in Egypt. While there are many Muslims who come to Christ, it is a huge risk and often very dangerous to leave Islam. For those who do, finding work and community can be almost impossible. Women often struggle to find time to visit outside the home, so we are providing them vocational training to learn to knit and sell scarves (left), but more importantly to give them time to meet with Christians and grow in their faith.
Mark of the Cross We met this young boy (left) in Cairo’s “Garbage City” just after he received a tattoo of the cross on his wrist. Despite persecution and ostracism for their faith, nearly all of Egypt’s Christians take this as an outward sign of their faith. His courageous testimony reminds us of the huge challenges he will inevitably face growing up as a Christian in Egypt. ICC supports dozens of kids, just like him, to get special help in school and mentoring for their physical and spiritual needs.
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To the Nation of the Cross
Remembering the 21 Martyrs “We thank God that he kept the faith.” — Mother of Milad “He kept the faith and was martyred for the Name of Jesus Christ. His faith was very strong. I’m proud of him.” — Wife of Malak “I was very comforted when I watched them crying the name of Jesus Christ during their execution. I’m very proud of my two brothers and their strong faith.” — Brother of Bishoy and Samuel
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art of ICC’s recent trip to Egypt was spent meeting with the family members of the 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians who were beheaded on the beach in Libya. Testimonies like those above were echoed by all as we talked with one heartbroken family member after another. While the massive heartache from losing a son, husband or brother in the most horrific way was plainly evident, there was at the same time an incredible sense of peace in the air, and praise to God flowed from the lips and hearts of the families during our visit.
“A Message Signed With Blood to the Nation of the Cross” On February 15, social media accounts linked with the Islamic jihadists known as ISIS (also ISIL, or Islamic State) released a highly produced video showing the brutal execution of 21 Christians, 20 Egyptian Coptic Christians and one believed to be from Ghana, along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in northern Libya. The video confirmed the threats that had been made in the seventh issue of the ISIS propaganda magazine, Dabiq, that linked the abduction and execution of these Egyptian
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Christians with a 2010 bombing of a church in Baghdad in response to perceived mistreatment of Egyptian converts to Islam. The 20 Egyptians had traveled to Libya to work in the country’s construction industry, something thousands of Egyptian men have done to be able to support their family in Upper Egypt, where there are few jobs available to Christians. On December 30, 2014, seven of the men were on a microbus attempting to return to Egypt when it was stopped near Sirte, Libya. The militants took only the seven Christians from the bus and allowed the others to leave. Then, in the morning hours of January 3, an estimated 15 militants raided a housing complex of foreign workers and went door to door searching for Christians. They found and abducted another 13 Coptic Christians.
‘We will conquer Rome, by Allah’s permission, the promise of our prophet.’ PERSECU ION.org
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The video closes with one of the jihadists stating, “We will conquer Rome, by Allah’s permission, the promise of our prophet.” ISIS has as its goal not only the control of land in Iraq and Syria, but to destroy those “who’ve carried the cross.” They are targeting Christians not only in the Middle East, but around the world.
Help After the Massacre, Where Was the Help Before? In the hours and days following the execution of the 21, help poured in from around the world. Churches were moved to respond, fundraising campaigns were launched and pledges were made by government leaders to care for the families of these men — for the very same widows and orphans we met with — to build churches in their honor. While these efforts are part of a noble and needed response, they are only reactive to the much larger problems facing Christians in Egypt. It is not just poverty that forced these men to leave their homes, but the persecution (including job discrimination) that is rampant in their own country. In Egypt, Christians are not being murdered on highly produced films, but they are being gunned down in the streets. To prevent other martyrdoms like those of the 21, changes have to start in Egypt and must confront the hostilities directed at “the nation of the cross.”
MAY 2015
Many Egyptians Approve of Slaughter The day the video of the 21 was released, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi called an urgent meeting of the National Defense Council. The next day, a week-long period of mourning was declared, and Egypt launched a series of airstrikes on ISIS targets in Libya. The country was shocked by the brutality of Islamic extremists who would take the lives of Christians simply because of their faith. This reaction caused some leaders to point out that Egypt harbors its own Islamic extremists who hold an ideology that permits them to murder those outside their own faith. “In Egypt, we have millions of Egyptian DAESH (Arabic acronym for ISIS) who, though dressed in a suit and tie, are waiting for their signal or opportunity to act on their own beliefs,” said Khaled Montaser, an Egyptian writer. This is something Egyptians are starting to wake up to following a year under the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi, elected in 2012 with over 13 million votes. In 2014, 75 percent of Egyptians told the Pew Forum they were concerned about Islamic extremism in their country, up from 69 percent in 2013 and 61 percent in 2010. The roots of Islamic extremism run deep in the country. “The beginning of the solution is that the ideology of DAESH is an external belief, not an internal ideology,” Montaser said. Changing this will require massive changes in the mindset of Egypt’s religious and political leaders, as well as those on the street. The rhetoric from Islamic teachers, the textbooks used in schools and popular culture have all planted the seeds that say it is permissible, even praise-worthy, to persecute the khafir (non-believers). It is not a far step from there to holding a knife on a beach in Libya. Until Egypt deals with its own extremism, Christians will continue to be attacked and assaulted by Islamic extremists in their own lands, as well as at the hands of ISIS.
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Families Share the Stories of t
Samuel Alham Wilson
Malak Ibrahim Sinweet
Loka Nagaty Anees
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27 | Married | Father of One
amuel was one of the twelve men who traveled from Al-Our village in Upper Egypt to find work in Libya. Al-Our is a rural village in Egypt where many Christians are unable to find work. The opportunity provided in Libya was one of the few options Samuel had in order to care for his family. The entire village was affected by this tragedy, but Samuel’s mother shared with ICC the incredible grace that she has found since her son’s death. “I thank God for choosing my son to be with Him in heaven, and for being one of the martyrs for Jesus Christ,” she said. In one of the most remarkable statements we have heard, Samuel’s mother added that she and her family were praying for ISIS — the very men who brutally executed her son. Samuel’s wife, Antsal, said, “God has put comfort and grace in our hearts.”
alak is with Jesus now. He kept the faith and was martyred for the name of Christ. His faith was very strong. I’m proud of him,” said Mariam, the wife of Malak Ibrahim Sinweet. Malak, from the Al-Our village in Upper Egypt, had started working as a young man and was never able to complete his education. In 2011, Malak traveled to Libya for the first time in order to find work. Malak returned to Egypt a few times after that, and a year later married a girl named Mariam. Shortly thereafter, Malak became a father when his wife gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. In June 2014, driven to provide for his wife and now 2-year-old son, Malak traveled back to Libya to work again as a builder. It was then that he was abducted and ultimately martyred. Asked about her husband’s faith, Mariam said, “I hope that the faith of my son will be like the faith of his father.”
oka was never able to meet his daughter Mariam, his first and only child. In 2012, Loka had traveled to work as a painter in Libya, where he stayed for a year to save money so that he could start a family. He returned to Al-Gebaly, Egypt, in May 2013 and was married the next month. By October 2013, his wife was expecting their first child, and Loka made the decision to return to work in Libya to support their growing family. His daughter, Mariam, was born in March 2014. The situation continued to deteriorate as Muslim extremists controlled more land and made travel back to Egypt extremely dangerous. On December 30, 2014, Loka decided to take the risk to see his daughter for the first time. He boarded a minibus in Sirte, Libya, but the bus was stopped by Islamic militants before it made it back to Egypt. Loka never made it home to meet his little girl.
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MAY 2015
f their Martyred Loved Ones
Bishoy and Samuel Kamel
Kirollos Mina Fayez Boushra Fawzy Aziz
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23 | Single
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irollos was just a teenager when he traveled to Libya for the first time in 2010. As the oldest of six children, he was the primary source of income for his family. The income from his construction job was vital if his younger siblings were to have an opportunity to get an education. Despite their pain, Kirollos’ family said they were strengthened and inspired by his faith. “I loved my brother when he was alive on earth, but now I love him even more than before because he died for his faith,” said Neven, Kirollos’ sister. “He said ‘Jesus’ in his last moment. His faith was very strong. I’m proud of him.” Kirollos’ uncle, Fr. Philemon, told ICC, “The news of executing our sons was very painful for us, but God has strengthened us. They kept the faith until the last breath. We thank God for supporting and giving them the strength of endurance.”
ina was another of the young men who went to Libya to work with the hope of a bright future ahead of him. In January 2014, Mina finished his compulsory military service. With that completed, he began looking for work. In Egypt, the opportunities for Christians to find work with sufficient income are few and far between. After a few months of searching, Mina took a construction job in Libya, where his older brother, Romany, was also working. The job appeared to be a good opportunity to help take care of his family and save for the future. Romany was able to safely return to Egypt in August 2014, but Mina was still working when he was abducted in January 2015. “His departure is very difficult for us, but we are very happy because he knew his fate,” said Kirollos, Mina’s younger brother. “I love my brother so much. I wish I could be with him now.”
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hile entire villages and multiple families were impacted by the brutal beheading of the 21 martyrs, one family lost two of their sons that day. After their abduction, the fear for their fate was unimaginable. “We were living in such hard times during the period of the captivity of my brothers before their martyrdom,” Beshir said of his two brothers, Bishoy and Samuel. “This period, which lasted more than 40 days, was a period of anguish, torment and torture for us.” Bishoy had been working in Libya for over two years. Samuel first went to Libya in 2012, but returned a year later before going back in June 2014 to work as an electrician. “I was very comforted when I watched them crying the name of Jesus Christ during their execution,” Beshir said. “I’m very proud of my two brothers and their strong faith.”
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A Nation on the Edge of Hope A comprehensive approach to persecution in Egypt. Early in 2015, ICC’s advocacy department hit the ground in Cairo, Egypt, as a part of our comprehensive strategy for aiding the persecuted. Over the course of just a few short days, we would meet with two of the nation’s top human rights organizations, three of the most influential religious leaders in the country and dozens of victims of religious persecution. We also held high-level talks (see next page) with the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, pushing for greater involvement and action by the United States in regards to religious freedom in Egypt. We returned with full notebooks, hundreds of photos and videos and hours of audio recordings, ready to brief policymakers in Washington D.C. and move the West into greater action on behalf of Egypt’s persecuted believers. One of our primary objectives was to uncover what, if any, substantive changes had taken place under the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the former general who rose to power in 2013 after toppling the Muslim Brotherhood. What we discovered is, despite great hope in the future, very positive statements and moves by el-Sisi and even strong support among Christians, Egypt
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remains today a very dangerous and very difficult place to live for most of the estimated 8 million Christians who call it home.
change to his identification. It is a change he has yet to receive, despite more than seven years of intense persecution (read his story on page 30).
Discrimination on a Daily Basis
A Comprehensive Approach
For many Christians in Egypt, discrimination remains a simple fact of life. Perhaps one of the more striking features of life for Egyptian Christians living in this environment is the requirement that their religion be listed on their government-issued I.D. cards. This requirement applies to almost all citizens, but it also allows police, potential employers and other authorities to immediately identify and discriminate against Christians simply by looking at their identification. In the case of religious conversion, the government will not change the identity card if a Muslim converts to Christianity; the card will only be changed if a Christian converts to Islam. Muslims who convert to Christianity will never be recognized by the government as Christians, essentially forcing them to live a double life. Their children, even if born after their conversion to Christianity, will remain listed as Muslim and can be taken from them at any time. This issue is what led Bishoy Armia Boulous, a convert from Islam to Christianity, to campaign for a
To address this issue and the myriad of other challenges facing Egypt’s Christians requires more than raising awareness and direct material assistance. It also requires advocacy, and this means shaping and targeting the considerable levels of U.S. influence in Egypt. Since 1946, the United States has provided Egypt with over $188 billion in aid, and since 1987, Congress has appropriated $1.3 billion in military aid to Egypt every year. The United States also exports wheat, corn, machinery, aircraft and other products to Egypt while importing a considerable amount of Egyptian-made textiles and agricultural products. These extensive ties mean that America’s voice carries weight with the Egyptian government. Unfortunately, that considerable influence of the United States has not yet translated into greater religious freedom for Egypt’s Christians. ICC’s work, and the point of our visit to Egypt, is to ensure that when the U.S. speaks to Egypt, it does not forget to address the ongoing suffering of the millions of Christians in Egypt today. It may not always be clear to see on the surface, but when we act as an advocate with U.S. government leaders on behalf of Egypt’s beleaguered Christians, they, in turn, will speak up for the persecuted. This means that in Egypt, the freedom to practice one’s faith without fear will slowly, but surely, increase. MAY 2015
Speaking Truth to Power ICC’s advocacy is bringing the voice of the persecuted to U.S. policymakers.
Early this year, ICC held high-level talks at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt.
A few of the children our staff met on our visit to Cairo share their beautiful smiles.
While in Cairo, we met with the U.S. Embassy staff. We were surprised when the embassy staff greeted us at the entrance, moved us past security without any checks and ushered our team into the ornate ambassador’s residence for a meeting with the Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM), the U.S. Embassy’s second-in-command. His staffers told us how the DCM regularly reads our press releases and news and would hand them ICC press releases regarding cases in Egypt to investigate. The DCM asked us to brief him on the state of Christian persecution in Egypt. We brought up a range of issues, and urged him to increase U.S. engagement with the Christian community. We also asked that the embassy staff do their best to put pressure on Egypt’s foreign ministry to forge rescue plans for the kidnapped Copts in Libya, who we warned were in serious danger. A week later, ISIS released a video showing the beheading of 21 Christians in Libya.
ICC visited Cairo to investigate the conditions for Christians living in Egypt.
Children from Cairo’s “Garbage City,” where Christians work to manage waste.
Over the past several years, ICC’s advocacy division has been working diligently to build strong relationships and trust with the U.S. State Department. We do this by providing policymakers with accurate, balanced and inside information which can’t be found elsewhere, always keeping the voices of the persecuted at the forefront.
ICC staff visits “Garbage City” to meet with persecuted Christians.
We secured significant agreements from the embassy to take action in several areas. As we left the ambassador’s residence, our team felt confident that religious freedom and the persecution of Coptic Christians had been placed high up on the agenda of the U.S. government in Egypt.
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CHRISTIAN KIDNAPPINGS An Epidemic in Egypt
Christians are being abducted at an alarming rate in Egypt. Young girls are taken and forced into conversion and marriage, and young men are held for large ransoms.
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By Rebecca Seiler, Communications Coordinator
hat began as a typical Monday errand quickly turned to tragedy as Christine Talaat Sharobim was robbed of both freedom and familiarity when she was abducted in Kharga City, Egypt. The recent college graduate of the College of Pharmacy in Cairo stopped by a local store to buy a bottle of mineral water on July 14, 2014, when she was ambushed. She quickly phoned her father, crying and pleading for him to rescue her, but was disconnected before she could tell her father who her captors were. This was the last time that Christine’s father ever heard his daughter’s voice. The disappearance of a child is a tragedy that no parent ever hopes or expects to face. However, this is the harsh reality for families throughout Egypt as the trend of kidnapping Christian women continues. Without cause or warning, Christian girls are stripped away from the comfort and safety of their families
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and churches and swept into forced marriages, where they are forced to convert to Islam or, in some cases, are held for ransom. Due to the fact that many Christians in the region work in medical professions, some operate under the assumption that all Christians are wealthy, or if not wealthy themselves, then that the church or their families have money. In Egypt, Christians are also generally perceived as passive and not prone to violence, making them easy targets in the eyes of kidnappers. These assumptions paired with the vulnerability that is associated with being a religious minority in the Middle East is a lifethreatening combination. In 2014 alone, ICC documented 97 incidents of men, women and children who were abducted, the majority of which went both unnoticed by the public and ignored by local authorities. ICC is working to change that. By documenting their cases, telling their stories and advocating on their behalf, we hope to make a difference in the lives of Christians across Egypt.
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The Bigger Picture While the abduction of Christian girls has received some attention, this is just one piece of a bigger story. Christians across Egypt are targeted for abduction on a staggering scale. The trend of kidnapping Christians affects a much larger population than just young girls: nearly 60 percent of those abducted are adult males. In the 97 incidents that ICC documented, some of which included multiple victims, 62 men, 12 women and 33 children were kidnapped. We documented a total of 107 Christians who were abducted, and the actual figure is certainly much higher. Of the 97 documented cases, 31 resulted in the payment of a ransom, with the total amounting to 6,156,000 EGP in paid ransoms, a figure which converts to nearly $810,000 USD, an average of $26,000 per ransom. Kidnappers throughout Egypt face widespread impunity, and the majority of cases never receive a proper follow-up. With stakes this high and risks so low, kidnappers have little incentive to stop. These individuals are typically abducted MAY 2015
Police rarely pursue cases of Christians abducted in Egypt, leaving family members to fear the worst when their loved ones disappear. by groups of armed men, often in plain view. Those who are not kidnapping for religious purposes are often members of criminal gangs seeking a ransom. They then keep their victims in an unknown location until their demands are met, which unfortunately is quite common.
The Root of the Issue
Nearly a year later, Christine’s relative told ICC, “Christine is still missing and there isn’t any news about her. We have urged the interior ministry to help us find Christine, but no one has helped us up till now and we’ve lost hope.” As seen in cases where ransoms are the focal points of the crimes, motivations may be traced back to deeply ingrained cultural divisions. Due to the political instability and lack of protection for religious minorities, criminals are able to make an easy profit by kidnapping Christians. Poverty has also been seen to be a driving force in these abductions. Perhaps the most significant motive leading to the kidnappings of Christians in Egypt is Islamic extremism and hostility toward reli-
gious minorities. In a case from May 2014, a 17-year-old girl named Sarah was kidnapped by a radical Islamist man from a neighboring village, forced to marry her abductor and forcibly converted to Islam. Due to the partiality toward Islam among government officials, police officials declared that her marriage was not forced and the charges were dropped shortly thereafter.
Hope for the Future
The lack of concern shown by police and government officials in the region is indicative of the government’s attitude toward religious minorities. Among the cases that do receive police attention, the majority of victims are released. Unfortunately, however, most cases are ignored. In an interview with ICC representatives in Egypt, a local police officer stated that among police who are aware of the kidnappings, there is simply not enough will to address the issue. The kidnappers are often heavily armed, and the understaffed and poorly armed police do not view the payoff as being worth
the risk. Only by spreading awareness that these abductions are occurring at this level will the Egyptian government feel the pressure to take the necessary action to protect its citizens. In light of this devastating trend in crime, there is still hope for families in Egypt. By bringing attention to the plight of these women, the international community will be able to deliver justice. The first step in bringing freedom to women like Christine is better documentation of such cases. By filing the necessary police reports and continuously following up about the cases, it will become more difficult for local authorities to deny the existence of this issue. Proper documentation will also lead to a more cohesive set of statistics that will bring attention to the issue of kidnappings among both political and human rights groups in domestic and international spheres alike. By bringing attention to this largely unnoticed issue, we hope to also bring freedom to Christians across the nation of Egypt who are suffering under the same conditions as Christine.
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Remember Those in Priso
“Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are illtreated, since you yourselves also are in the body.” Hebrews 13:3 (NASB) 30
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hen ICC’s staff picked up the case of Bishoy Boulous in November of 2014, the world had largely stopped paying any attention to him. Locked away in South Cairo’s notorious Tora Prison, Bishoy had once been seen as Egypt’s most famous Muslim convert to Christianity. Now, with the guards breathing threats of murder and fellow prisoners hurtling insults of kafir (unbeliever in Arabic) at him, it seemed that the man who had dared to challenge his government’s repressive restrictions on religious freedom might be left to perish in obscurity. Seven years earlier, in the summer of 2007, Bishoy and his wife were preparing to welcome their first child into the world. The only
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problem was that while Bishoy and his wife had both converted to Christianity years before, their official identification remained Muslim. In the eyes of the government of Egypt, Bishoy, his wife and child were all in fact Muslims and expected to behave and engage in society as such. This would impact every area of life for them and their soon to be born baby girl. From requiring their children to attend Islamic religious classes at school to living under Sharia law, life in Egypt is deeply affected by the faith that is listed on every citizen’s birth certificate and identification card. Instead of simply accepting the status quo or fleeing the country, Bishoy courageously decided to challenge the government directly. When authorities refused to change the religious affiliation listed on his identification, Bishoy filed MAY 2015
son: Bishoy Boulous suit against the government. In a country where more than 88 percent of Muslims support the death penalty for apostasy, it was a move that could cost Bishoy his life. The reaction to Bishoy’s suit was swift and fierce. Muslim religious leaders called for his death, his home was set on fire and Bishoy was detained by authorities from Egyptian state security, interrogated and beaten. His attorney soon dropped the case for fear of his own life. In 2009, Bishoy was charged with blasphemy, a charge that carries a potential death sentence. The case fizzled out, but eventually Bishoy was forced into hiding while his wife and children fled the country. On December 4, 2013, Bishoy was arrested again. Trumped up charges were filed, including “disturbing the peace by broadcasting false information.” He was held for nearly seven months before being convicted. His attorney immediately appealed, and Bishoy should have been released pending appeal, but within hours state security prosecutors in Cairo decided to renew the 2009 charge of blasphemy. Bishoy was transferred to Tora Prison in Cairo, where he would be physically and verbally abused by prison officials over the next several months. In November 2014, ICC launched a new campaign on Bishoy’s behalf, bringing his case back into the spotlight. Over the course of four days, ICC’s staff toured Capitol Hill in Washington D.C., holding 19 meetings with offices in the House, the Senate and the State Department. Shortly thereafter, calls from congressional offices on Capitol Hill inquiring into Bishoy’s case began to reach the Egyptian government. Finally, on December 19, 2014, for the first time ever in Bishoy’s case, nine members of Congress
An ICC staffer met with the lawyer representing Bishoy.
‘For as long as Bishoy remains a prisoner for his faith, ICC will continue to fight on his behalf.’
wrote an open letter to the attorney general of Egypt, calling for Bishoy to be released immediately. Nine days later, on December 28, 2014, two of the three charges against Bishoy by the court in Upper Egypt were dropped, and Bishoy was sentenced to time already served on the third charge. It was the first glimmer of hope in Bishoy’s case in over a year as his case finally began to attract attention at the highest levels of government. Unfortunately, at the time of writing, Bishoy remains imprisoned in Tora while the federal government continues to investigate him on the charge of “insulting Islam,” or blasphemy. ICC, however, continues to fight on his behalf. On Monday, February 9, ICC staff met with U.S. Embassy officials in Cairo, pushing for greater involvement from the United States on Bishoy’s behalf. Then, on February 17, an ICC-initiated letter to Egypt’s attorney general, in partnership with Coptic Solidarity, garnered signatures from 18 human rights organizations calling for Bishoy’s release. For as long as Bishoy remains a prisoner for his faith, ICC will continue to fight on his behalf. At the same time, by fighting for Bishoy, ICC is also continuing to fight on behalf of all of the many converts to Christianity in Egypt who, even today, are not allowed to change the faith listed on their identification to Christian. As long as this restriction remains, and for as long as Bishoy remains imprisoned for his faith, ICC will continue to work tirelessly on his behalf. Will you pray with us that justice will be done for Bishoy and for all of Egypt’s Christians? As Hebrews exhorts, let us “remember the prisoners as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since [we ourselves] are also in the body.”
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