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Heart and Soul: Nubians of the Nile

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Groom Akram delivers some last-minute invitations to his wedding

26/02/2017 GMT

Nubians of the Nile

BBC World Service - Heart and Soul, Nubians of the Nile

Nicola Kelly joins Nubian mothers baptising their babies in Egypt’s river Nile

Under cover of darkness Nicola Kelly joins several Nubian mothers as they secretly baptized their babies in Egypt’s river Nile.

**This is an edited version of the original broadcast to accurately reflect the events of the wedding described in the programme**

On the banks of the Nile in southern Egypt, Nubians, an ethnic group of African Egyptians, are forced to practice Christian traditions in secret under the watchful eye of an Islamic government. 

Their quiet acts of resistance - baptising their children under cover of darkness, wedding ceremonies celebrated at midnight and signs of the cross hung discreetly in homes - carry significant risk. Nicola Kelly joins those who are prepared to take this leap of faith to maintain traditions they see as integral to the Nubian culture.

With religious attacks against Christian groups in Egypt on the rise, Nicola Kelly explores the current tensions between the Egyptian authorities and the Nubians. She investigates how the political and historical landscape has limited religious freedom in that part of the country and asks what hope marginalised groups have for the future of Christianity in Egypt.

Photo: Groom Akram delivers some last-minute invitations to his wedding in Shadeed, an island in the Nile close to Aswan, Credit: Nicola Kelly

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