A mob has attacked the Baha’is in the southern Egyptian village of Showraniah, burned their homes and expelled them from the village.
Things appeared to be improving for the Baha’is in Egypt following the decision by the Supreme Administrative Court that will allow Baha’is to obtain ID cards without having to lie about their religious affiliation.
Incitement by a “journalist”
Egyptian journalist Gamal Abdel Rahim, who writes for Al-Gomhoryiah (The Republic) newspaper, is one of the most vocal opponents of the Baha’is in Egypt. He advocates pronouncing all Baha’is as apostates and urges their killing.
In a TV “discussion” on 28th March between this so-called “journalist” and two Baha’is, the fearless Dr Basma Moussa and Ahmad El-Sayyid, a Baha’i from Showraniah, Gamal Abdel Rahim made provocative comments against the Baha’is. The mob attacked the Baha’is on 31st March, as a result of the TV programme, a claim made by the mob’s leader, Mohammad Youssry Mohammad, in a comment on Gamal Abdel Rahim’s blog.
Exceptional
This kind of attack on Baha’is, while all too frequent in Iran, is truly exceptional in Egypt. Many Egyptians – leaders of society, journalists, human rights acitvists, politicians, artists, jurists – are supportive of the Baha’is and their rights.
The Egyptian authorities must take action against the ignorant and hate-filled characters who perpetrated this outrage.
Read more
Read the whole story on Bilo’s blog here.
Technorati Tags: Baha’i, Bahai, Egypt, arson, ethnic cleansing, apostasy
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