Kabul, Afghanistan, Mar 20, 2006 / 22:00 pm
The Associated Press is reporting that an Afghan man who reportedly converted from Islam to Christianity is facing a potential death sentence from a court in Kabul.
Abdul Rahman is charged with violating his country’s Islamic laws by making the conversion. Judge Ansarullah Mawlavezda told the AP that the man was arrested last month after his family turned him into police for being a Christian.
The judge said that Rahman claims he converted 16 years ago—at age 25—while working as a medical aid worker in neighboring Pakistan.
"We are not against any particular religion in the world, Judge Mawlavezda said.” But in Afghanistan, this sort of thing is against the law…It is an attack on Islam. ... The prosecutor is asking for the death penalty."
The case is thought to be the first of its kind in Afghanistan and reportedly, the charges could be dropped if Rahman agrees to convert back to Islam. That, he said however, is not an option.
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