A Christian nonprofit legal advocacy organization is urging Egyptian authorities to liberate six young Christians incarcerated for more than two weeks after posting a TikTok video that authorities deemed offensive to Islam.
In an Oct. 22 report, the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) said the six, who range in age from 17 to 23, were detained and questioned on charges of “exploiting” and “insulting” the religion of Islam, according to a story by the National Catholic Register.
“We urge the authorities to release these six young men and drop any investigations against them immediately,” said Kelsey Zorzi, ADF’s senior counsel and vice president of international advocacy.
The video posted on Oct. 4 allegedly contained audio from a well-liked Egyptian comedy film showing prisoners unfamiliar with Quranic prayers. According to ADF, the six recreated the scene.
“These young men did nothing but share a lighthearted video with a voiceover from a popular and uncontroversial film, as many others on the platform have done. There is no reason to charge or imprison them,” Zorzi said.
Zorzi said the incarceration is part of a bigger precedent of discrimination against Christians in Egypt.
“This is tragically common in Egypt, where Christians face threats, discrimination, and ultimately imprisonment for speech that is only seen as problematic because they are not part of the majority religion,” she said.
ADF calculates that Christians comprise 10% to 15% of Egypt’s population. The advocacy group said they continue to face discrimination, violence, and imprisonment despite constitutional guarantees of religious freedom.
It said the continued use of blasphemy and related “insult” laws has perpetuated the persecution of Coptic Christians.
