Egyptian court upholds first-ever conviction of Muslim militant for blasphemy against Christianity
March 23, 2015
An Egyptian appeals court has upheld the conviction of an Islamic leader for burning a Bible.
Ahmed Mahmoud, popularly known as Abu Islam, was found guilty of violating an Egyptian law against public displays of contempt for religion. His conviction is the first for a Muslim charged with offending against Christianity.
Abu Islam, a militant Salafist, had burned Bible outside the US embassy in September 2012, to protest the burning of a Qu’ran by the American Evangelical preacher Terry Jones. He was originally sentenced to an 11-year prison term for the offense, but that sentence was reduced to a 5-year term. The court also ordered him to pay a fine of about $1,000.
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Posted by: ElizabethD -
Mar. 24, 2015 12:38 AM ET USA
I don't know what to say exactly. Try a taste of your own medicine? Turnabout's fair play? But that's not Christian. Burning a Bible as a gesture of disrespect (as opposed to a respectful way of retiring a worn out Bible) is presumably a sin, and even burning a Koran as a gesture of disrespect is uncharitable, but I don't think it's just because I am American that I don't believe it should be a civil crime. This may have something to do with influence of Sharia on Egyptian culture and law.
