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Egypt: Widow forgives killer

On Palm Sunday suicide bombers attacked two churches in Egypt, killing 49 people. The bomber of the second church in Alexandria had had hoped to kill the Coptic Pope Tawardos, but his guard Naseem Fahmi stopped the attack him. In doing so, Naseem was killed. His widow Samira is mourning the death of her husband, but she has chosen not to be angry.

“I am sure Naseem was happy to give his life for Christ,” Samira says, dressed in the black. Palm Sunday wasn’t the first time a church had been attacked and Naseem was extra vulnerable because of his work as a guard. “When we talked about this one day he said that he would be willing to defend the church with his own blood. Last Sunday he did.”

Naseem was one of the men guarding Saint Mark’s church in Alexandria. When the suicide bomber tried to enter the church, Naseem stopped him and asked him to pass through the metal detector first. There the bomber blew himself up. Naseem didn’t survive, but his swift action saved the lives of many others.

“I am proud of what my husband did,” Samira says, “but life has become hard for me after his death. He was everything in my life.” She remembers another part of her conversation with her husband: “He told me that he knew me and the kids needed him but that he also knew that God would take care of us if something might happen to us.”

“Naseem’s life was at the church, and now his life is in heaven. I know he is in a good place.” She has a loving message for the killer and those in Egypt that think like him: “I forgive you and I ask God to forgive you. I pray that God may open your eyes to enlighten your minds.”

Naseem was a husband and a father of two adult sons. In two months he would have become a grandfather for the first time. He was also a beloved church member. He served the church for over 20 years. He died at the age of 54.

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Pray now…

• Pray for Samira and her sons and step daughters as they deal with the loss of Naseem
• Pray for comfort for all those traumatised by the attacks
• Ask that the church in Egypt with keep acting with courage and boldness, despite these attacks
• Pray for peace and reconciliation across Egypt