Egypt: Christian faces blasphemy trial

Supporters of jailed Coptic Christian Alber Saber accused the Egyptian government of pursuing a double standard by putting him on trial for blasphemy.

His supporters told BikyaMasr.com that while Saber was jailed for posting an anti-Islam video online, a Salafist television presenter who showed 15-minutes of the insulting video hasn't been charged.

A court on Monday said it would try Saber for blasphemy.

Saber was ordered jailed for 15 days after a number of his neighbors accused him of defaming Islam and being an atheist. His mother received death threats and his family was evicted from their home.

"I don't want to live in a country that arrests people for being atheists," one Egyptian journalist told BikyaMasr.com

A number of rights groups in Egypt are calling for an investigation of injuries Saber received in jail.

Among the groups is the Hisham Mubarak Law Center, the Cairo Center for Human Rights Studies and the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression, the Egyptian website said.