A former sheikh was poisoned April 2 in Uganda after his wife learned he had converted to Christianity.
Hiire Sadiki, who lives in Butaleja District’s Nawanjofu village, placed his faith in Jesus Christ on March 27. After he did not observe Islam’s Ramadan, his wife noticed he was praying in the name of Christ, reported Morning Star News.
She questioned her husband, who formerly had been an Islamic teacher. Sadiki told her he had become a believer in Jesus. His wife then consulted Islamic leaders. Later, a neighbor visited the family’s kitchen while Sadiki’s wife prepared supper. After eating supper, Sadiki became seriously ill, but no other family members got sick from the food.
Sadiki’s Christian pastor took him to a hospital, where Sadiki’s condition worsened. Tests concluded his poisoning was from a pesticide, Morning Star News reported after speaking with the pastor.
Sadiki’s wife told the pastor her husband deserved to die for leaving Islam.
Approximately 12% of Uganda’s population is Muslim. Uganda’s constitution and laws allow for freedom of religion, including converting from one faith to another. However, Christian churches increasingly have received threats of violence, and some Christian converts have been attacked, killed or excommunicated by Muslim family members, the World Atlas reported.
