Morocco jails German Evangelist for trying to convert Muslims
Pastor Dale Morgan
Morocco jails German Evangelist for trying to convert Muslims*
Reuters
Wednesday, November 29, 2006; 12:40 PM
RABAT (Reuters) - A Moroccan court jailed a German Evangelist for six
months for attempting to convert Muslims in the southern resort of
Agadir, officials said on Wednesday.
The court in Agadir, Morocco's main tourist destination, found the
64-year-old man guilty of trying to "shake the faith of a Muslim," they
added.
The court also fined him 500 dirhams ($60) in its verdict issued late on
Tuesday.
Court officials named the German of Egyptian origin as Sadek Noshi
Yassa, who was arrested last week as he was distributing books and CDs
about the Christian faith to young Muslim Moroccans in the street, the
officials said.
Under Moroccan law "anyone who employs incitements to shake the faith of
a Muslim or to convert him to another religion" can be jailed for up to
six months and fined.
The verdict came after local media reports that some Christians had
launched a clandestine campaign to convert thousands of Muslim Moroccans
to Christianity.
There are about 20,000 expatriate Christians in Morocco, most of them
living in Rabat and Casablanca, according to estimates by European
diplomats.