Afghan Believer Released; Muslims Chant “Death to Christians!”
Abdul Rahman, the Afghan man who faced a possible death sentence by beheading for converting from Islam to Christianity, has been released. Muslims, chanting “Death to Christians!” took to the streets to protest Rahman’s freedom. Rahman was turned into authorities by his own family, who are among the Afghan Muslims who seek Rahman’s execution for the crime of following Christ.
Rahman has gone into hiding, and Italy has offered him asylum. More news from the Associated Baptist Press here. The ABP reports says at least two other Afghan Christians remain in jail under circumstances similar to Rahman’s ordeal.
Two-hundred and eighty-four U.S. military have been killed in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led invasion of that country in 2001. The U.S. has 18,000 troops stationed in Afghanistan. The most recent U.S. death happened earlier today, when Taliban insurgents attacked the U.S. base there.
The Afghan constitution, which was drafted and adopted after the Taliban was ousted in 2001, declares Islam the supreme law of the land, and Islamic law calls for the execution of Muslims who abandon the religion. Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, an organization closely linked to James Dobson, criticized the Bush administration’s foreign policy for failing to make religious freedom in Afghanistan and elsewhere a top priority. Quoted in the ABP article linked above, Perkins said:
Simply dismissing the charges based upon lack of evidence does not sufficiently address the lack of religious freedom in Afghanistan. As the United States continues its work in Afghanistan and Iraq, it is vital that the Bush administration secure a clear understanding of religious freedom from these new governments. Abdul Rahman’s imprisonment has revealed a major fault in our foreign policy.
