Speaking at a conference in Milan, Italy, on May 8, 2013, that city's archbishop, Cardinal Angelo Scola, called for the abolition of blasphemy laws worldwide. Such a step would significantly help protect globally the freedom of speech and religion desperately needed by Christians in particular while countering Islamic fanaticism with freedom.
http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130522-906073.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/22/dc-coptic-solidarity-idUSnPNDC18901+1e0+PRN20130522
Morsi Sheikh, former head of the Appellate Court and director of the Center for Justice and Democracy of Human Rights, stated that Copts in Egypt face continual threats and violence from Islamists.
He was commenting on one of the fathers of the children accusing Coptic teacher Demiana Abdel Nour of insulting Islam after the child's father threatened to kill thousands of people. Her case had been postponed, prompting the father's outburst.
"The Muslim Brotherhood and Salafis do not want justice to run its course, by threatening them, and judges often succumb to the pressure," Sheikh told Mideast Christian News.
The Chinese saying "A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with One Step," is used to encourage a person to embark on a prosperous but seemingly impossible task. However, in the current situation in Egypt the saying applies negatively in the attempt of the Muslim extremists, headed by the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) government, the Salafists and other equally vicious and violent hooligans to de-Christianize Egypt.
A huge fire broke out late Sunday night in the church of the Virgin Mary in Tema, Sohag [Upper Egypt], and resulted in significant losses in the church building due to fire trucks’ delayed arrival.
The fire also destroyed some houses neighboring the church.
All attempts by citizens to control the fire, which caused some injuries from severe smoke inhalation, failed.
The fire’s cause has yet to be determined.
Police and the criminal investigation department moved to the scene to inspect the site after the fire was extinguished on Monday. An accurate estimate of losses has not been carried out so far due to power outage.
The incident has not resulted in deaths and the number of injured people, either those who received treatment on-site or those who were transferred to the hospital as a result of smoke inhalation or burns, has not been determined yet.
For his part, Fr. Paul Samaan, priest of the church, said he received a telephone call from Copts near the church on the outbreak of fire at 11.30 p.m. on Sunday.
“The fire was huge, as the flames rapidly devoured the wooden roofs and furniture of the church, which dates back to 1935,” Fr. Samaan said in exclusive remarks to MCN.
“The church is an ancient two-story building with some adjacent buildings for services. This resulted in heavy losses to the church’s building.”
According to Fr. Samaan, eight fire trucks arrived at the scene to control the blaze, which moved to the homes adjacent to the church, which are mostly inhabited by Copts. Although the trucks arrived late, the fighters managed to control the fire by Monday morning.
He added that the fire broke out on all sides of the church at once.
Fr. Samaan said they obtained a preliminary approval before the revolution to rebuild the church, but this approval was suspended after the 25 January. He pointed out that they have been trying to obtain a license to rebuild the church but to no avail.
Losses have not been fully estimated due to the smoke continuing to rise from the building. The number of homes affected by the fire has not also been calculated.
Fr. Samaan met with security agencies at 4.30 a.m. to find out the reasons behind the fire and discuss the implications of the situation.
It is worth mentioning that a flyer was distributed in Tema on 19 December 2012, which threatened the death of Christians and burning of churches.
The leaflet read: “To the Crusaders of Tema and sons of the traitor (Pope) Tawadros, you who announced war on Islam and began with insulting the Prophet. You conspired against the Islamic president and mobilized people to prevent the application of Sharia and the repeal of Article II. Therefore, your churches, monasteries and priests will be a target to our attacks in case we discover these churches or any Christian schools are built without licenses, or if any Christian disdains the divine majesty, Prophet Muhammad, his Companions or the Islamic sanctities.”
It is important to note that such accidents have increased in recent month where churches in Egypt get burnt by mobs or "accidentally due to unknown reasons."
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‘Complete Implementation of Sharia,’ Pledges Bassem Khafagi in Presidential Campaign in Egypt
- Details
- Published on Thursday, 15 March 2012 08:13
Bassem Khafagi, Former Community Relations Director of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and A Founder of Islamic Assembly of North America (IANA) – Who In 2003 Was Convicted In U.S. and Deported – Says In His Presidential Campaign in Egypt: I Pledge To 'Complete Implementation of Islamic Law'
In statements televised on March 12, 2012 on the Egyptian Al-Nas TV, Egyptian presidential candidate Bassem Khafagi said: "[A]s a Muslim Egyptian, I am convinced of [the need to] complete the implementation of Islamic law in Egypt. I do not hide this truth in any way, because it is in keeping with the inclination of the Egyptian people." He added, "As president, I will personally assist in the completion of the correct implementation of the shari'a, by consulting the experts [in Islamic law]."
Khafagi was sentenced in September 2003 in the U.S. to 10 months in prison and deported to Egypt, after pleading guilty to two counts of bank fraud and one count of visa fraud. He had been charged with funneling money to promote terrorist activities through the Islamic Assembly of North America (IANA). At the time of his arrest, Khafagi was also community affairs director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
According to the FBI, Khafagi was a founding member and former head of the IANA. Federal prosecutors said that the group's objective was the "dissemination of radical Islamic ideology, the purpose of which was indoctrination, recruitment of members and the instigation of acts of violence and terrorism." Federal investigators said the IANA has funneled money to activities supporting terrorism and has published material advocating suicide attacks on the United States. The IANA said it was formed to promote Islam.
Khafagi was one of four former or current students at the University of Idaho at Moscow, ID and at Washington State University at Pullman, WA who were arrested in 2003 during an investigation of a suspected terrorist-related network in the Moscow-Pullman area.
According to school records, Khafagi earned a master's degree in civil engineering in August 1988 at the University of Idaho. After working as a teaching assistant and taking postgraduate classes there, he enrolled at Michigan State University, earning a doctorate in civil engineering in 1993. He later lived in Ann Arbor, Mich., operating a business called International Media Group from his home, court documents showed; according to the documents, it was not clear what kind of business it was.
Following are excerpts from statements by Egyptian presidential candidate Khafagi that aired on Al-Nas TV on March 7, 2012: To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/3356.htm
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MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 4571—Egypt
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