Egypt: Christian girls kidnapped, forced to marry and convert to Islam

Teenage girls in Egypt are being kidnapped and being forced to convert to Islam and marry, according to new reports.

International Christian Concern says the local Christian community in Egypt is "paralysed" by the spate of disappearances of the young girls.

They include Amal Shaky, 19, kidnapped presumably on her way to Cairo University, according to International Christian Concern.

Her family thought at first she had gone to her party but when she did not appear, went to the police, who suggeted to her father that he had killed his daughter and thrown away the body.

After harassing Zakaria, the officer refused to file a report and asked for a few hours to investigate the matter. Amal had also been kidnapped in 2011.

"More than 40 days have passed since my daughter was kidnapped, and they say that the matter is under investigation," Amal's father told International Christian Concern. "I don't know how long I should wait. Wait until they tell me that my daughter is killed or got married?"

Human rights abuses in Egypt are causing increasing international concern. Human Rights Watch recently reported that Egyptian security forces arrested tortured 20 people, including eight children.

World Watch Monitor detailed how a few weeks ago, a Christian boy was kidnapped in Upper Egypt and released days later after a large ransom was paid. Anthonius Farag, 13, was taken outside his school in the village of Mansheyyit Manbal, off Matay. A Muslim child was released at the same time after the kidnappers established his religion. According to the Coalition of Coptic Egypt, a Coptic advocacy group, the Upper Egyptian province of Qena saw 72 cases of kidnappings, extortion and related violence against Copts in the period from 2011 to 2014, the most recent figures it has.

related articles
Egypt: Human rights activist working with Coptic Christians arrested, charged with terrorism

Egypt: Human rights activist working with Coptic Christians arrested, charged with terrorism

Attack on Christian grandmother fuels anger in Egypt

Attack on Christian grandmother fuels anger in Egypt

Angaelos praises forgiveness message from Christian grandmother forced to parade naked in street
Angaelos praises forgiveness message from Christian grandmother forced to parade naked in street

Angaelos praises forgiveness message from Christian grandmother forced to parade naked in street

News
The woeful ignorance of Justin Welby - Part Two 
The woeful ignorance of Justin Welby - Part Two 

Polyamory and open marriages are the next frontier for progressives. Yet the Church seems to be sleeping at the wheel.

Christian family expelled from Indian village after forced conversion attempt
Christian family expelled from Indian village after forced conversion attempt

Chhattisgarh is increasingly becoming a concerning place for Christians

Ugandan Christian convert killed by Muslim relatives while praying at home
Ugandan Christian convert killed by Muslim relatives while praying at home

A 37-year-old Christian convert in eastern Uganda was killed by members of his own family on Friday 18 July after they forced their way into his home and found him praying in the name of Jesus, according to local sources.

The Bible and food: why it's so much more than eating
The Bible and food: why it's so much more than eating

Eating - and eating together - is never a side note in the biblical story. It is one of the ways God forms community, renews covenant, and reveals Himself.