Freeing Kareem

Tom G. Palmer has a great article at National Review Online about imprisoned Egyptian blogger Abdul Kareem Nabil Soliman:

Four years in prison for blogging: three of them for inciting “hatred of Islam” and one for “insulting the president.” That’s the sentence handed down by an Egyptian judge to a young Egyptian blogger, Abdelkareem Nabil Soliman, generally known in the blogosphere as “Kareem.” On his website, he had criticized his university, Al Azhar, for being close minded and for suppressing thought — for which he was expelled. He called Egypt’s president Mubarak a dictator — for which he was arrested and imprisoned. As he noted, “I broke the widespread traditions in the Great Jail of the Arab Republic of Egypt!” For that he was sent to jail.

A more sensitive issue is that he openly criticized the practices of the founders of Islam and argued that they were not models for modern life. His remarks inflamed radical political Islamists. They even offended some who have defended him, although that has not dampened their resolve. His two staunchest defenders are Dalia Ziada and Esraa Al Shafei, two young Muslim women who have worked tirelessly in behalf of his freedom. Both are outspoken in defense both of their religion and of Kareem’s right to be critical of it.


Please read the rest:

Getting Kareem Freed