{"id":92736,"date":"2026-04-30T17:15:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T15:15:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/?p=92736"},"modified":"2026-04-30T17:19:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T15:19:17","slug":"egyptian-court-fails-to-grant-easter-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/en-gb\/news\/egyptian-court-fails-to-grant-easter-holiday","title":{"rendered":"Egyptian court\u00a0fails to\u00a0grant Easter holiday"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"92736\" class=\"elementor elementor-92736\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-7b94a2cb elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"7b94a2cb\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2b972224\" data-id=\"2b972224\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f0f9163 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f0f9163\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><strong>Egyptian Christians currently are forced to choose between participating in Easter worship or facing serious civil, professional, and academic penalties\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>Religious freedom advocates will appeal the rejection,\u00a0with legal support from ADF International.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>The petition is part of movement to advance religious freedom in Egypt, removing barriers to worship in\u00a0country with deep Christian heritage.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5b32d1ea elementor-widget elementor-widget-theme-post-featured-image elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"5b32d1ea\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"theme-post-featured-image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"330\" src=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Egypt-Banner-1.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-72588\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Egypt-Banner-1.png 640w, https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Egypt-Banner-1-300x155.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3e3418bd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3e3418bd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">CAIRO\u00a0(30 APRIL 2026)<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0\u2014\u00a0An Egyptian court has declined to rule on a petition to\u00a0establish\u00a0Easter as a national holiday,\u00a0indicating\u00a0that the Prime Minister should\u00a0instead\u00a0determine\u00a0the matter.\u00a0Religious freedom advocates from across Christian denominations plan to appeal the decision,\u00a0seeking\u00a0to remove longstanding barriers to\u00a0Christian\u00a0observance of Easter.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The failure to recognize Easter as an official holiday in the country\u00a0leaves in place conditions that force Egyptian Christians to choose between\u00a0participating\u00a0in Easter worship\u00a0or\u00a0facing serious\u00a0civil, professional,\u00a0and\u00a0academic\u00a0penalties.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The court rejected the petition on procedural grounds,\u00a0stating\u00a0that the petition falls under the\u00a0jurisdiction\u00a0of the Prime Minister, not the court.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Because Sunday is a regular working day in Egypt, Christians who\u00a0observe\u00a0Easter are often unable to meet work and school obligations,\u00a0and\u00a0thus\u00a0face penalties as a result.\u00a0These include\u00a0loss of pay, discrimination in the workplace,\u00a0and academic consequences for absences\u2014conditions\u00a0that\u00a0significantly\u00a0restrict the ability of Egyptian Christians to freely practice their faith.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-751403d5 elementor-blockquote--skin-border elementor-widget elementor-widget-blockquote\" data-id=\"751403d5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"blockquote.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<blockquote class=\"elementor-blockquote\">\n\t\t\t<p class=\"elementor-blockquote__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span style=\"color: #AF272F\">\u201cAt a time when many Christian communities in the region face severe persecution and even erasure, this decision leaves in place barriers that prevent Christians from freely observing the holiest day of their faith.<\/span> We urge Egypt to take meaningful steps to ensure that the rights of Christians are recognized and protected.\"\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-q-footer\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<cite class=\"elementor-blockquote__author\">- Kelsey Zorzi, Director of Advocacy for Global Religious Freedom at ADF International<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-df0fa6b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"df0fa6b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201c<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">The Court\u2019s\u00a0decision leaves Christians in Egypt unable to worship freely\u00a0and without fear of penalty or discrimination\u00a0on the most sacred day of their faith. This is about far more than the recognition of a holiday\u2014it is about the denial of a legal right to worship for Christians who already face ongoing and severe religious persecution,<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201d said Kelsey Zorzi, ADF International\u2019s Director of Advocacy for Global Religious Freedom.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:true,&quot;134245529&quot;:true,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201c<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Egypt has been a cradle of Christianity since the first century, with the Coptic Church tracing its origins to the Apostle Mark in Alexandria. At a time when many Christian communities in the region face severe persecution and even erasure,\u00a0this decision leaves in place barriers that prevent Christians from\u00a0freely\u00a0observing\u00a0the holiest day of their faith. We urge Egypt to take meaningful steps to ensure that the rights of Christians are recognized and protected,<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201d stated Zorzi.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:true,&quot;134245529&quot;:true,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">While Egypt has taken steps in recent months to expand accommodations for Christian worship, those measures\u00a0remain\u00a0limited in scope and unevenly applied. A December decision by the Ministry of Manpower granting leave to Christian private-sector workers did not extend to the public sector and created disparities among Christian denominations by granting more paid leave days to Coptic Christians than Evangelicals or Catholics.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:true,&quot;134245529&quot;:true,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The Court\u2019s ruling leaves these gaps unaddressed, failing to provide consistent protection across sectors and communities. ADF International will support the appeal of the ruling, seeking to overturn the decision and secure recognition of Easter as a public holiday.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245418&quot;:true,&quot;134245529&quot;:true,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-179c3cf9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"179c3cf9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Long-awaited recognition of the right to worship remains unmet amidst widespread persecution <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-599142a2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"599142a2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Egypt is home to one of the world\u2019s oldest Christian communities, and Christians make up a significant portion of the population alongside the Muslim majority. In this context, recognition of Easter Sunday would not have created new or numerous religious observances, but rather corrected a longstanding inequality affecting one of the country\u2019s two primary religious communities on the most important day of its calendar.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The decision comes against the backdrop of broader religious freedom challenges facing Christians in Egypt, including the use of blasphemy laws to prosecute individuals for expressing or defending their faith and the refusal of the State to formally recognize the religion of Christian converts on their official documents. Earlier this month, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom recommended Egypt for placement on the U.S. State Department\u2019s Special Watch List due to the government\u2019s perpetration or toleration of severe violations of religious freedom.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Egypt\u2019s blasphemy laws are often used to unjustly prosecute Christians for actions or statements\u00a0deemed\u00a0offensive to the dominant religion. Penalties range from hefty fines to prison sentences.\u00a0Most recently, a young Coptic Christian researcher and YouTuber, <a href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/news\/christian-youtuber-in-egypt-faces-five-years-imprisonment\">Augustinos Samaan<\/a>, was arrested under Egypt\u2019s blasphemy laws and later sentenced to five years\u2019 imprisonment and hard labor for content he posted online defending his Christian faith. Dozens of similar cases have recently been filed in criminal courts in the country.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In another case, a\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/cases\/abdulbaqi-egypt\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Christian father<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> was imprisoned for three years for his activity in a Facebook group discussing conversion from Islam to Christianity. ADF International has supported his legal defense and joined religious freedom leaders from the international community in demanding his release. Abdulbaqi was freed in January 2025 and has been safely reunited with his family. His case remains open before the State Security authorities.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">By declining to remove barriers to Easter observance, the Court\u2019s decision leaves Christians in Egypt unable to freely worship on the holiest day of their faith.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201c<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Religious freedom includes the ability to live out one\u2019s faith in practice and in community\u2014not only in private belief. The Court\u00a0refused\u00a0an opportunity to ensure that Egypt\u2019s Christian community can fully\u00a0observe\u00a0the holiest day of their faith without penalty,<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201d Zorzi added.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31766620 elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"31766620\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2a2a4e2c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"2a2a4e2c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Images for free use in print or online in relation to this story only<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7e7e43f1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-gallery\" data-id=\"7e7e43f1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;aspect_ratio&quot;:&quot;1:1&quot;,&quot;lazyload&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;gallery_layout&quot;:&quot;grid&quot;,&quot;columns&quot;:4,&quot;columns_tablet&quot;:2,&quot;columns_mobile&quot;:1,&quot;gap&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;gap_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;gap_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:10,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;link_to&quot;:&quot;file&quot;,&quot;overlay_background&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;content_hover_animation&quot;:&quot;fade-in&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"gallery.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery__container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"e-gallery-item elementor-gallery-item elementor-animated-content\" href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/headshot2-Copy-1-scaled.jpg\" data-elementor-open-lightbox=\"yes\" data-elementor-lightbox-slideshow=\"7e7e43f1\" data-elementor-lightbox-title=\"Kelsey Zorzi\" data-e-action-hash=\"#elementor-action%3Aaction%3Dlightbox%26settings%3DeyJpZCI6OTI3MzcsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOlwvXC9hZGZpbnRlcm5hdGlvbmFsLm9yZ1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDRcL2hlYWRzaG90Mi1Db3B5LTEtc2NhbGVkLmpwZyIsInNsaWRlc2hvdyI6IjdlN2U0M2YxIn0%3D\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-gallery-image elementor-gallery-item__image\" data-thumbnail=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/headshot2-Copy-1-1024x874.jpg\" data-width=\"1024\" data-height=\"874\" aria-label=\"\" role=\"img\" ><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-gallery-item__overlay\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Egyptian Christians currently are forced to choose between participating in Easter worship or facing serious civil, professional, and academic penalties\u00a0 Religious freedom advocates will appeal the rejection,\u00a0with legal support from ADF International.\u00a0 The petition is part of movement to advance religious freedom in Egypt, removing barriers to worship in\u00a0country with deep Christian heritage.\u00a0 CAIRO\u00a0(30 APRIL [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2073,"featured_media":72588,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[29,1140,343,27],"class_list":["post-92736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-christian-persecution","tag-egypt","tag-freedom-of-religion","tag-religious-freedom"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.5 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - 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