Egyptian Court Dismisses Shehata Case

An Egyptian court has thrown out an Islamist-backed lawsuit demanding that the location of Camelia Shehata be revealed, stating that investigations had shown she was not being held against her will by the Coptic Orthodox Church. More here.

Camelia Shehata Appears on Egyptian TV

Camelia Shehata appeared on a Coptic Orthodox television station Saturday evening to once again confirm her adherence to the Orthodox Faith and her marriage to her husband, a Coptic Orthodox priest in Minya, Upper Egypt. More here.

Islamists Riot in Giza, Burn Church of St. Menas

Twelve are dead and more than 200 wounded in the district of Imbaba in Giza, Egypt, after violent protests by Muslim fundamentalists. During the violence the rioters partially burned the city's 6th century Church of St. Menas, where Coptic Orthodox priest's wife Camelia Shehata was supposedly being held hostage, and blocked Muslims and Copts trying to put out the fire from doing so. More here. Giza's Coptic Orthodox cathedral has announced three days of mourning for the victims of the unrest.

Copts Rally at Abbasiya Cathedral

Thousands of Copts surrounded St. Mark's Cathedral in Abbasiya, Cairo, today in response to last Friday's demonstrations outside the cathedral by Muslim fundamentalists demanding the release of Coptic Orthodox priest's wife Camelia Shehata. More here.

In the meantime, Camelia Shehata has appeared today in a publicly released picture with her husband and son, once again refuting Islamist claims that she is being held against her will in a monastery by the Coptic Orthodox Church. More here.

Video of the Day: Camelia Shehata Affirms Her Orthodox Faith

Please view this to see Camelia Shehata reject claims that she is being held against her will or that she has converted from Orthodox Christianity to Islam. The video is in Arabic, but has English subtitles.

Camelia Shehata Refuses Church's Request to Appear on Egyptian TV

The lawyer of Camelia Shehata has announced that, contrary to the recent statement of the Coptic Orthodox Church, she will not appear on television in the near future, further stating that she lives happily with her husband and son, remains an Orthodox Christian, and does not wish to have such a high profile in Egyptian public life. More here.

Camelia Shehata to Appear on TV

It has been announced that Camelia Shehata, at the center of a controversy over conversion in Egypt (namely its acceptability when it's to Islam and its illegality when it's not), will appear on television in a few days to (once again) refute claims that she is being held against her will by the Coptic Orthodox Church because of her desire to become a Muslim. More here.

Egyptian Prosecution Requests Testimony from Camelia Shehata

The Egyptian public prosecution office has requested that Camelia Shehata, a Coptic Orthodox Christian supposedly being kept against her will from converting to Islam (and in actuality in hiding from the assortment of Islamists who would like her to convert to Islam regardless of her feelings on the matter), appear to testify in a case that has been filed against the Coptic Orthodox Church regarding its 'holding' of her. More here.

Islamists Demonstrate in Cairo

Thousands of Muslim fundamentalists demonstrated today in Cairo for the release of Coptic Orthodox women they claim are being held against their will because of their desire to convert to Islam. The demonstrators do not believe taped interviews with one of the supposed victims that deny any desire to accept Islam. More here.

Islamists Protest Over Camelia Shehata

In an ironic twist Islamists have organized protests calling for the release of an alleged Coptic Orthodox convert to Islam supposedly being held against her will by the Church. More on that here. The protests are shameful given the long history in Egypt of the killing of Muslim converts to Orthodoxy and the kidnapping and forced marriage to Muslims of Coptic Orthodox women and young girls. Irregardless, the woman in question, Camelia Shehata, has herself repeatedly and publicly confirmed that she never converted to Islam and remains a Coptic Orthodox Christian. God help Egypt...