Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Convert in Egypt Arrested for Marrying Christian

Egypt police have arrested a woman, who converted from islam to Christianity, for marrying a non-muslim man. Although there is no specific law in Egypt which prohibits this, police have arrested her under the pre-text of shariah law. Under islamic law, women are not allowed to marry outside of islam but men are able to. Christian News Today

ISTANBUL, Christian convert Raheal Henen Mussa and her Coptic husband are hiding from police and her Muslim family for violating an article of Islamic law (sharia) that doesn’t exist in the Egyptian penal code.

Police arrested Mussa, 22, on April 13 for marrying Sarwat George Ryiad in a customary marriage (zawag al ‘urfi), an unregistered form of matrimony in Egypt made without witnesses. It has gained popularity among Egyptian youth but is not sanctioned by most Islamic scholars.

The two signed a marriage contract between themselves. Only Ryiad and their attorney have a copy. Police have not obtained a copy of the contract, but they used its existence as a pretext for arresting Mussa.

According to a strict interpretation of sharia, Muslim women are not permitted to marry non-Muslim men, although the opposite is allowed, and Article 2 of the Egyptian Constitution stipulates that sharia is the basis for legislation.

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