
Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo / ADF International
CV NEWS FEED // A Christian convert who was imprisoned in Egypt for three years over religious Facebook posts has finally been released, yet his case remains open.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International reported in a Feb. 2 news release that Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo, who is originally from Yemen, was arrested in Egypt in 2021 for his actions as part of a Christian Facebook group that “discussed Islamic theology and apologetics.” Abdo had gone to Egypt from Yemen for safety following his conversion from Islam to Christianity, which had resulted in death threats.
According to a statement in the news release from Kelsey Zorzi, director of advocacy for religious freedom for ADF International, Abdo was arbitrarily detained and not given a criminal trial. He was also refused an opportunity “to defend himself against alleged offenses.”
Abdo spent his three years of imprisonment in several different detention centers, and was recently released through the efforts of ADF International and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. He experienced numerous health problems in prison, including issues with his heart, liver, and kidneys.
“I endured many hardships in prison,” Abdo said, according to ADF International. “It isn’t right that a government should tear me away from my family, keep me in these awful conditions, only because of the faith in which I peacefully choose to believe.”
Abdo’s son, Husam Baqi, also decried the censorship.
“It is hideous that individuals are not allowed to believe and express their beliefs freely and are imprisoned or killed for their faith,“ he said.
Despite being released from prison, Adbo’s legal case is still open. He is represented by ADF International, fighting for justice for what Zorzi called a “severe violation of human rights. ”
“The peaceful expression of one’s religious convictions cannot [be] a crime – not in Egypt, nor anywhere else in the world,” Zorzi stated. “This case shows the extremity of unchecked government censorship in the online age. The world must take note.”
