Imprisoned Christian convert Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo (54), a Yemeni refugee, has declared a healthcare strike to protest his unjust detention. He and fellow Christian Nour Girgis were arrested in 2021 for their involvement with a Facebook page supporting converts to Christianity from Islam, and have been held without trial since then.

In a letter (pictured) to his family, Abdulbaqi recently announced a strike to protest the injustice he has endured, starting by refusing healthcare treatment and continuing until he makes the strike “complete”. (See translation of the letter, originally written in Arabic, below.)

Abdulbaqi and Nour have been held in pre-trial detention for over two and a half years and have been moved around to different detention centres while their trials have been repeatedly postponed. Their health has declined and they have only been allowed occasional visits from family and lawyers. In April 2024, prison authorities denied Abdulbaqi medical treatment for chest pains.

Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo

Abdulbaqi and his family converted to Christianity in 2013 in their native Yemen, where they lived in a rural area outside Taiz, and he and his family were subjected to a wave of violent attacks after Yemeni Muslims learned of their conversion. Members of his family told Amnesty International that he was fired from his job, his car was damaged and that in June 2014 his home was set on fire and his wife died as a result. In August 2014, he and his four children fled to Egypt.

Abdulbaqi has been living in Egypt as a UNHCR registered asylum seeker, but the Egyptian authorities have reportedly attempted to refoul him to Yemen, despite the risk if he returns.

On 15 December 2021 Abdulbaqi was arrested after an appearance on a Christian TV channel when he talked about his conversion and the persecution faced by Christians in Yemen. He had also discussed theology with Christian converts in a private Facebook group called “Al Abareen” (Arabic for “to cross over”), which the authorities alleged was linked with terrorism activities.

Security forces arrested Abdulbaqi at his home in the Faisal area of Cairo at 2.00 am after carrying out a search and seizing three laptops. He was charged with “joining a terrorist group” and “contempt of Islam”.

Abdulbaqi is currently being held at the 10th Ramadan Prison and now has five children since a son was born to his second wife during his detention.

His wife recently told Fox News, “My husband, Abdulbaqi Saeed, has been detained in Egyptian prisons since December 2021 without any real charges against him. This was only because he spoke about his religious beliefs on social media. He has now completed two years, eight months in pretrial detention, which is in violation of Egypt law.

“My husband suffers from heart, liver and kidney diseases, and his health condition is deteriorating. He started a medication strike two weeks ago and plans to escalate to a full hunger strike gradually over the next month in protest of his unjust and arbitrary detention.”

In May 2024 prison authorities placed Abdulbaqi in solitary confinement after a prisoner reported him for copying Bible verses on scraps of paper. While in solitary confinement the authorities denied his family routine monthly visits and prevented him from showering or changing his clothes for a week.

In September 2023 Amnesty International voiced an appeal for Abdulbaqi, stating that he is being held “solely for exercising his rights to freedom of expression, conscience and belief and must be immediately released” and adding that “any plans to deport him must be halted”.

Abdulbaqi’s letter

“My beloved wife and children, who are precious to my heart and soul. My dear, I miss you a lot, a lot a lot. And I pray to God that he will protect you and make you successful in all your situation of your life. And my prayer is that God will unite us together soon.

“Rest assured. I am fine when you are fine. My kisses to all of you. Send my greetings to [REDACTED], [REDACTED], and [REDACTED] and inform them and the UN that I started today on the 7 of August 2024 a partial strike. And I refuse to take treatment from the person who is responsible for healthcare in the prison. And I requested from him to tell the management in the prison that I am doing so.

“I am going to increase my strike in stages until I make the strike complete during the coming weeks. And the reason of my strike that they arrested me without any legal justification. Or that they convicted me for any violation of the law. And they did not set me free during my remand imprisonment which was ended 8 months ago.

“The important thing I am waiting for your visit on Thursday the [REDACTED] of August. And you can come earlier for an exceptional case. But if your circumstances are difficult you can come on a basic visit and bring food.

“At last all love and respect to all of you.

“I love you all, Daddy.”

Nour Girgis

Egyptian-born Nour Fayez Ibrahim Girgis is an Evangelical Christian who was arrested on 1 November 2021 for his connection with the same Facebook page as Abdulbaqi.

Nour was working as a pharmaceutical employee when his employer asked him to report to a police station to answer questions. Police detained him and he was held incommunicado for forty days before being transferred to the Terrorism Unit, where a prosecutor told him that he was being held under terrorism laws for leading the “Al Abareen” Facebook group and for blasphemy.

Nour has been interrogated repeatedly about his activities and about whether he has any links to Western organisations. His trial date has been postponed repeatedly and he has not had the opportunity to prepare a sufficient defence with his lawyer. He is detained in Al-Ashir Prison and in June 2024 it was reported that he has been subject to abuse and torture by prison security.

Legal campaign

ADF International is supporting the two Christians’ legal defence and is pursuing international legal mechanisms to advocate for their urgent release following Abdulbaqi’s strike letter. Kelsey Zorzi, ADF International’s Director of Advocacy for Global Religious Freedom, stated: “We are utilising every mechanism available to ensure that both men are released and returned to their families.”

ADF International has submitted information to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on behalf of the two men, citing deprivation of their right to religious freedom and a fair trial under international law.

“The arbitrary detention of these two Christian men without trial constitutes a severe violation of their human rights,” said Elizabeth Francis, Legal Counsel for ADF International’s Global Religious Freedom team. “The peaceful expression of one’s religious convictions is not terrorism. No one should be imprisoned for supporting Christian converts, let alone be told that they are a national security risk for expressing their beliefs.”  

(ADF International, Amnesty International, Christian Daily, Fox News, Egypt Initiative for Personal Rights, International Christian Concern, United States Commission on International Religious Freedom)

Photos: ADF International