Islamic Death Penalty Targets Christian Converts

Brick hospital building with cross and statue — Photo: James Kirkikis / Shutterstock

Egypt put a Christian convert before a terrorism court and, according to his lawyer, is pushing for the harshest sentence allowed by law.

Story Snapshot

State security prosecutors charged Said Abdelrazek with contempt for Islam and other offenses.
Authorities sent the case to a terrorism circuit of Egypt’s First Criminal Court in Badr.
Defense says prosecutors aim for execution or 25 years in prison.
Rights groups call the case punishment for peaceful religious belief.

What prosecutors filed and where the case now stands

Egypt’s Supreme State Security Prosecution charged Said Mansour Rezk Abdelrazek on July 22, 2025. The list includes contempt for Islam, joining a banned organization, inciting unrest, and spreading false information, according to a United States Commission on International Religious Freedom entry. Authorities referred the case to the Terrorism Circuit of the First Criminal Court in Badr. The first hearing took place on April 21, 2026, then adjourned, leaving the case ongoing. Advocacy accounts describe long pretrial detention and unresolved evidence disputes.

Defense attorney Said Fayez says prosecutors want the “maximum penalty.” He describes that as execution or 25 years in prison. The Jerusalem Post reported that claim and also cited the defense view that the alleged terrorist organization is fictitious. Prosecutors have not released a public charging memorandum with the quoted posts, names, or exhibits that tie each count to specific acts. That gap fuels the defense narrative and outside pressure on the court.

How Egyptian law turns belief disputes into public-order cases

Egypt does not have a statute that makes apostasy itself a crime. Courts and police have used other laws to police speech and belief that officials see as threats to public order. The most cited tool is Penal Code Article 98(f), which punishes using religion to stir strife or insult a “heavenly religion.” Rights reporting shows this law often appears beside security or false-news charges in cases tied to conversion or blasphemy. Amnesty International also documents heavy use of special terrorism circuits for speech cases in recent years.

The Abdelrazek file mirrors that pattern. The state used a terrorism court and added claims of unrest and false information. That framing lets prosecutors say the case is not about private belief. It is about national unity. Yet the public record does not show a named riot, victim, or specific incident tied to him. That absence makes the state’s theory hard to assess from the outside and easy to question under basic free speech and free exercise standards.

The defense, rights groups, and the stakes for conscience

Amnesty International calls Abdelrazek a prisoner of conscience and urges his immediate and unconditional release. The group says he is detained only for peacefully practicing his religion, and it cites allegations of torture and forced renunciation attempts in custody. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom database frames his detention as linked to conversion and online expression, not to clear acts of violence or recruitment. Coptic Solidarity argues that branding a convert’s speech as a threat to unity turns freedom of conscience into a crime.

✝️ PERSECUTED FOR FOLLOWING CHRIST. WILL THE WORLD REMAIN SILENT?

28 DAYS UNTIL DECEMBER 8, 2026 — SAID ABDELRAZEK FACES COURT.

This is about Christian persecution in Egypt, the suffering of Coptic Christians, and the right to follow Jesus without fear.

Said Abdelrazek… pic.twitter.com/abAObknn4V

— Brittnie. (@DistantDiaspora) November 11, 2026

Common sense says the government should show concrete harm if it claims national security. Name the group. Show the money trail. Produce the posts, their dates, and how they sparked a real breach of peace. If prosecutors have that proof, they should publish it. If they do not, the case looks like punishment for belief dressed in security language. American conservative values honor faith, family, and the right to speak the truth as one sees it. That includes the right to change one’s faith.

What to watch next: evidence, due process, and international pressure

The next stage will test the evidence chain. The court can demand the posts, device logs, and forensics that tie accounts to Abdelrazek. It can ask for the alleged group’s name, members, funding, and actions. It can probe any claims of forced statements. It can also weigh sentencing law and whether Article 98(f) and related counts can reach a lawful maximum, as the defense fears. Rights groups will track whether the terrorism circuit follows fair-trial rules seen as lacking in recent referrals.

Egypt’s leaders say they guard national unity. They should also guard the freedom that keeps unity strong. No country grows safer by treating peaceful belief as a bomb. If the state proves real incitement or a violent plot, punishment will follow law. If not, mercy and release would do more for Egypt’s image, its stability, and the basic promise that a citizen may seek God without fear. That is not Western spin. That is human decency backed by sound law.