An Egyptian former imam was detained for nearly two years without formal charges after converting from Islam to Christianity, according to international human rights organisations.

Bahaa el-Din Ahmed Hussein el-Akkad embraced Christianity in January 2005 after studying the faith. Months later, he was arrested by Egypt’s State Security Intelligence and accused of blasphemy under Article 98-F of the penal code, a law frequently criticised by rights groups for limiting freedom of religion.

Despite court orders authorising his release, security agencies allegedly ignored the rulings and kept him in detention. Mr el-Akkad was held partly in a maximum-security prison and remained imprisoned without trial until 2007.

At the time, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch condemned the detention, describing it as part of a wider pattern of harassment and arbitrary arrests targeting religious converts in Egypt. The organisations said blasphemy provisions such as Article 98-F had been repeatedly used against individuals who peacefully changed or expressed their beliefs.

Similar concerns have been noted in annual reports by the United States Department of State on international religious freedom, which document legal pressure, detention and social hostility faced by converts from Islam in Egypt.

Christian advocacy groups, including Open Doors and Christian Solidarity Worldwide, say Mr el-Akkad’s case highlights the continued vulnerability of religious minorities, particularly converts, in parts of the Middle East, despite constitutional guarantees of religious freedom.

Egyptian authorities have consistently stated that blasphemy laws are designed to maintain public order and social cohesion, and have denied claims of systematic religious persecution.