ICC Note: In the latest court appearance for four Christian students in Egypt charged with blasphemy for a video mocking Islamic extremists, the judge has ruled that he will allow their lawyers to present evidence for their defense. The next hearing has been postponed until Dec. 3 at which time the court will review the evidence being used to charge them with blasphemy.  

10/24/2015 Egypt (MCN) – A misdemeanor court pushed back to Dec. 3 the hearing of four Coptic students accused of blasphemy to allow the defense to presnt evidence and screen a video of the students mocking the Islamic State, which some Muslims deem insulting.

The Oct. 22 decision came after the Beni Mazar Misdemeanor Court initially rejected the delay request.

Maher Naguib, the students’ lawyer, told MCN that at first the court completely rejected his request to present the evidence and watch the video and the court was about to deliver a sentence. Naguib added that he argued with the court to objectively watch the video with an open mind because it is not abusive of Islam.

“At the end of the hearing, the court responded to my request and agreed to bring the exhibits and watch the video and postponed the case,” the lawyer added.
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