Christian Woman Kidnapped, Converted

An Egyptian Christian woman, Rania Abd al-Meseh, was kidnapped on April 23rd by two veiled women in Monufia Governorate.  A video began circulating three days later of Rania announcing that she has converted to Islam. The video has been met with alarm by several Christians, who observe that her body language during the video appears that she is under great stress and saying the words under duress.

Rania is the mother of three daughters and her social media shows frequent posting of Christian material. Her brother Remon told local media that, “My sister was wearing the cross necklace and left home. So if she was wanting to convert to Islam, she would have left the necklace home.”

Christian women are often kidnapped in Egypt by extremists who force them to convert to Islam and marry Muslim men. It is difficult to bring these women home, and should their return be facilitated, resume life as before because of the regional honor-shame culture. In some cases, Christian women do indeed convert and marry Muslim men of their own free will, oftentimes further complicating these problems. Many impacted families do not feel the police seriously investigate these kidnappings nor hold the abductors accountable. The police often credit it to a misunderstanding or situation created by her own free will.