Update: Christian brothers re-arrested

Refaat and Ibrahim Fawzy Abdo, Christian brothers who were falsely accused of murdering a Muslim in Mallawi, Upper Egypt in May 2008 (read the details), were re-arrested on May 20 for "security reasons" by the Minya State Security Services, according to a May 29 report from Compass Direct. The brothers had earlier been released on bail on May 3. According to their lawyer, their re-arrest is part of an intimidation campaign against Egyptian Christians. The believers have reportedly been unable to see their wives and children and have suffered mistreatment, including time in solitary confinement and severe beatings in which their teeth were broken.

To learn more about the ongoing opposition of Christians in Egypt, visit the Egypt Country Report.

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Egypt Profile

Location
Africa

Population
82,079,636 (July 2011 est.)

Ethnicity (%)
Egyptian (99.6), other (0.4)

Religion (%)
Muslim (86.67), Christian (12.83), Non-religious (0.50)

Leader
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces

Government type
Republic

Legal system
Based on Islamic and civil law

Statistics provided by CIA World Factbook and Operation World.