Egyptian Copts and Muslims held a candlelight vigil this Monday (November 8, 2010), mourning the victims of an attack on a church in Baghdad that left 58 dead. This attack was carried out by a group calling themselves the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), who vowed to target Christians in response to allegations that the Coptic Church is holding captive women converts to Islam.
Wishing to prevent similar attacks on Egyptian soil, the government has beefed up security patrols around churches and has vowed to subject anyone entering Christian holy places to searches. At a time when the Copts feel anxious regarding the relative safety of their future in Egypt, these gestures are greatly appreciated by the community, indicating that the government hasn't completely forgotten about them.
While the Copts have not faced any recent attacks, Wednesday, November 10, saw Christians in Iraq targeted once again in a series of coordinated bombings. Coming just days after the previous attack, Iraqi Christians appear one step closer to leaving the country, despite pleas from PM Norri Al-Maliki.
In other news, highly influential Islamic cleric Yusuf Al-Qaradawi publicly stated his support for women to run for the highest political offices. Qaradawi, who is of Egyptian origin, heads the International Union of Islamic Scholars and is viewed as one of the most popular and influential Islamic clerics today.
Lastly, human rights groups have condemned the Egyptian authorities for the continued detention of an Egyptian blogger who was arrested in 2006. Abdel Karim Nabil was sentenced by an Alexandria court to four years in prison for insulting state run religious university Al-Azhar, as well as President Hosni Mubarak.
This is reflective of an endemic cultural reality in the Arab and Turkish and Persian world, that consistently refuses to acknowledge the right of minority and different cultural narratives and identity in the region. Suppression of the Kurdish language and peoples as well as the prevalence of anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli cultural media in Egypt and the Arab World coupled with attacks on Christian minorities reflects this sad reality. Dominant cultures need to recognize and respect minority cultures' rights to self-determination and expression.
ReplyDeleteSerder Tigbarji