Dr. Ashraf Ramelah

About Dr. Ashraf Ramelah

Dr. Ashraf Ramelah is the founder and president of Voice of the Copts, a human rights nonprofit organization 501 (c) (3). The organization has offices in Italy and the United States. Dr. Ramelah is dedicated to the Coptic cause and believes that his life’s mission is to speak up for the oppressed Copts who cannot speak up for themselves. When he is not meeting with political figures and policy makers, Dr. Ramelah spends his time travelling throughout the country giving talks about the Coptic issue and explaining to the West the oppression against the Copts in Egypt. Dr. Ramelah was invited to address the European Parliament (2010) and to be the keynote speaker in the Italian Parliament (2011) on the issue of Coptic persecution in Egypt. He has done various interviews with Italian newspapers and appears frequently in the Italian and Arab Media. Dr. Ramelah is a featured author at Arutz Sheva, American Thinker, Family Security Matters.com, Canada Free Press and others. Dr. Ramelah is well known to the Egyptian government due to his advocacy for the Egyptian Copts as well as for Voice of the Copts’ lawsuit against them on behalf of Muslim convert to Christianity Mr. Hegazy and his family in 2009-2010. Ashraf Ramelah also appears as an entry in the Coptic History Encyclopedia (http://www.coptichistory.org/new_page_5260.htm). Dr. Ramelah, himself a Copt, was born in Cairo, Egypt. At the age of 17, he travelled to Italy to study architecture. He graduated with a doctorate in architecture from La Sapienza – Universita’ Degli Studi di Roma,Italy. His special study is restoration of old monuments and history of architecture. His career as an architect took him to work and live in Italy, Saudi Arabia, Gabon and the USA. His personal interests are Egyptology and Coptic history in the period after the Arab invasion of Egypt in 651 AD. Voice of the Copts is dedicated to bringing fair, correct and balanced information to the entire world regarding Copts and Christians in countries with an Arab-Muslim majority.

EU and Egypt: realpolitik vs. human rights

By | 2013-04-24T00:53:52-04:00 April 24th, 2013|Op-Eds|

The EU should use its soft power to remind the Egyptian government of its obligations and that it seeks to maintain good relations, but only if it has a responsible partner   The EU’s High Representative, Catherine Ashton, was visiting Cairo when, during the funeral service for four Egyptian Christians who were recently killed, violence

Mosques to get Millions for Security, Nothing for Synagogues

By | 2013-04-23T21:39:12-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

The Ministry of the Interior will invest an estimated 15 million shekels in protecting mosques and monasteries from vandals, IDF Radio (Galei Tzahal) reports. Currently, there is no plan to provide Jewish holy places with similar protection.   Minister Gidon Saar has reportedly approved funding for extra security, including security cameras, for dozens of Muslim

Boston Bomber ‘Wanted to Defend Islam’

By | 2013-04-23T14:35:20-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, the surviving suspect in the bombing of the Boston marathon, has confirmed that his older brother Tamerlan was behind the attack, CNN reports, citing a United States government source.   Tamerlan, 26, was killed in a shootout with police last week.   Dzhokhar has reportedly said little to investigators, but confirmed that

Car bomb hits French embassy in Libya, wounds two guards

By | 2013-04-23T11:53:26-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

A car bomb targeted the French embassy in the Libyan capital early on Tuesday, wounding two French guards and bringing violence to the capital after attacks on foreign missions in the east. “There was an attack on the embassy. We think it was a booby trapped car,” Reuters quoted an official as saying. “There was

Syrian Opposition Denounces Hizbullah’s Role in Civil War

By | 2013-04-23T11:41:53-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

Syria's opposition warned on Monday that Hizbullah’s role in fighting in Homs province amounts to a "declaration of war," while the terrorist group said it is merely protecting Lebanese people, AFP reports.   The comments came as a watchdog said the Lebanese Shiite terror group was leading the battle in the Qusayr area of Homs,

Iran has Passed Red Line

By | 2013-04-23T11:24:08-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

Former Military Intelligence head, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, said Tuesday that "Iran has already crossed Israel's new 'red line'" regarding nuclear weapons development.   Yadlin, who is the Head of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), said that in the summer, Iran will reach a distance of one or two months between a

“Did You Hear About the Boston Explosion? I Did That”

By | 2013-04-23T02:32:28-04:00 April 23rd, 2013|News|

The as-yet unidentified victim of a car-jacking by the two "Boston Bombers" has recounted his brief but harrowing time in the hands of Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, as the two brothers fled from US authorities. According to an FBI affidavit obtained by Reuters news agency, Dzhokar, the younger of the two, is said to have

Egypt to Try Detained Qaddafi Cousin, Wanted in Libya

By | 2013-04-22T16:15:10-04:00 April 22nd, 2013|News|

Egypt will try a cousin and top aide of late Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi on charges of attempted murder, although Libyan authorities are pressing for his extradition, Egyptian state media reported on Sunday, according to the AFP news agency.   Ahmed Qaddaf al-Dam, arrested in Cairo in March after a gunfight with police in his