Student jailed in Egypt's crackdown on atheism

January 14, 2015 02:48

Egypt's Constitution states that "freedom of belief is absolute," yet it says nothing about those who don't believe.

Watchdog groups are asking the predominantly Sunni Muslim nation to reconsider its stance toward atheists after authorities arrested a student and sentenced him to three years in prison for Facebook posts that insulted Islam.Karim Ashraf Mohamed al-Banna was arrested with a group of people at a cafe in November, according to the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression.

An Egyptian minor offenses court sentenced him on blasphemy charges Saturday in what Human Rights Watch called "part of a wider government push to combat atheism and other forms of dissent."

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