Woman Wearing Hijab Stabbed 18 Times in Dresden Courtroom after Suing Her Alleged Attacker for Calling her “Terrorist”
Washington, D.C. | July 7, 2009 | www.adc.org | Today, in a letter to German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth, the American-Arab Anti Discrimination Committee (ADC) expressed its somber concern over the heinous murder of an Egyptian woman in a courtroom in Dresden, Germany.
According to reports, Marwa Al-Sherbini was stabbed to death 18 times in a German courtroom while her husband, who tried to intervene, was also stabbed by the attacker and shot in the leg by a security officer who mistook him to be the attacker. Al-Sherbini was three months pregnant and was murdered in-front of her three-year old son.
Ms. Al-Sherbini was involved in a lawsuit against the alleged attacker who had called her a “terrorist” because she was wearing the Muslim headscarf or hijab. She was scheduled to testify against him when this horrendous act took place. Ms. Al-Sherbini was wearing her hijab at the time of the attack. The prosecutor at the hearing, described the attacker as having a deep hatred towards Muslims.
In the letter to Ambassador Scharioth, ADC National Executive Director Kareem Shora said, “We understand that a comprehensive legal investigation is being conducted by German authorities. However, this heinous crime must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This attack is but the most recent incident involving anti-Muslim hate and intolerance targeted against the Muslim community in Germany.” The letter continued, “It is our hope that German authorities will use all available legal means to classify this as a hate-motivated murder and report it to the appropriate agencies monitoring anti-Muslim intolerance including the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).”
The letter concluded with an ADC request that “the German Government will take more concrete steps to protect the Muslim communities and Muslim institutions of Germany.”
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NOTE TO EDITORS: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which is non sectarian and non partisan, is the largest Arab-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980, by former Senator James Abourezk to protect the civil rights of people of Arab descent in the United States and to promote the cultural heritage of the Arabs. ADC has 38 chapters nationwide, including chapters in every major city in the country, and members in all 50 states.
The ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI), which was founded in 1981, is a Section 501(c)(3) educational organization that sponsors a wide range of programs on behalf of Arab Americans and of importance to all Americans. ADC-RI programs include research studies, seminars, conferences and publications that document and analyze the discrimination faced by Arab Americans in the workplace, schools, media, and governmental agencies and institutions. ADC-RI also celebrates the rich cultural heritage of the Arabs.
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Contact: Yousef Munayyer
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee | www.adc.org
1732 Wisconsin Ave., NW | Washington, DC | 20007
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