Additional Name(s): Said Abdel-Razek; Saeid Mansour Abdulraziq
Gender: Male
Current Location: 10th of Ramadan Prison
Perpetrator: Egypt
Religion or Belief: Christian – Unspecified/Other
Reports of Torture: Yes
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Said Abdelrazek
Extra Bio Info:
Said Abdelrazek is detained for his religious conversion and activity.
After converting from Islam to Christianity in 2018, Abdelrazek was subject to various legal, social, and civil obstacles that presented significant challenges to his right to freedom of religion. In 2019, Abdelrazek left Egypt for Russia, where he sought asylum on religious grounds. In 2023, Russian authorities arrested Abdelrazek for his connection to a privately filmed video that was purportedly offensive to Islam.
In 2024, he was refouled to Egypt and detained by Egyptian authorities. He was held incommunicado for approximately 10 days. When communication resumed, Egyptian authorities interrogated him about his religious beliefs and pressured him to reconsider his faith, monitor other converts, and asked him to delete his social media accounts. Authorities ultimately released him with instructions not to speak publicly or proselytize.
In July 2025, Egyptian authorities detained Abdelrazek again without a warrant after he resumed posting about his religious beliefs online. On July 22, Egypt's Supreme State Security Prosecution charged him with "contempt for Islam," joining a banned terrorist organization, inciting unrest, and disseminating false information. During detention, authorities and inmates physically and psychologically abused Abdelrazek for his conversion.
Oct 20, 2025
Torture and Ill Treatment are Tools of Violating Religious Freedom
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released the following report on religious freedom and torture:
Religious Freedom and the Prohibition of Torture and Ill Treatment – Governments around the world continue to breach international law by engaging in torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment (“ill treatment”) of individuals. In promoting international religious freedom, the U.S. government is required to consider the connection between religious freedom violations and torture. Recognizing how torture and ill treatment can be used to violate religious freedom strengthens both the protection of this right and the right to be free from torture by expanding remedies for victims and increasing state accountability for violations. This factsheet provides an overview of U.S. policy related to this nexus, relevant international human rights standards, and contexts where violations occur concurrently. The factsheet includes case studies highlighting this intersection from countries including Afghanistan, China, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Turkmenistan.
Throughout its 2025 Annual Report, USCIRF cites reports of torture and ill treatment based on religion or belief. USCIRF further documents in its Frank R. Wolf FoRB Victims List victims targeted due to their religion or belief who have suffered torture or other ill treatment.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan legislative branch agency established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at [email protected].
Oct 17, 2025
The Eritrean government does not recognize religious communities other than the Tewahedo Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Evangelical Lutheran churches, along with Sunni Islam. As a result, there are dozens religious minorities including Jehovah’s Witnesses (including several religious leaders), Baptists, and Pentecostals currently incarcerated in Eritrea. Authorities pressure prisoners to renounce their faith and ban praying aloud, singing, preaching, and possessing religious books. In 1994, police abducted Jehovah’s Witness Negede Teklemariam for “conscientiously objecting to performing compulsory military service.” He remained in prison for 26 years without being formally charged. The government finally released him in 2020. In its 2025 annual report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. Department of State designate Eritrea as a Country of Particular Concern.
On today’s episode of the USCIRF Spotlight Podcast, USCIRF Supervisory Policy Analyst Scott Weiner speaks with former Eritrean religious prisoner of conscience Negede Teklemariam about his experience being imprisoned for exercising his freedom of religion or belief. Scott is also joined by John McEachin of the Jehovah’s Witnesses as he discusses the general status of the Eritrean Witnesses community and possible policy changes that might offer them some relief.
Read USCIRF’s 2025 Annual Report Chapter on Eritrea and USCIRF’s most recent Eritrea Country Update.