Mauritanian student faces death penalty for insulting Prophet Mohammed

A secondary school student in the North Atlantic Ocean African country of Mauritius could be sentenced to death after she was arrested for allegedly insulting Prophet Mohammed.

Local media in the country reports that Islamic authorities have demanded the death penalty for the student after she was arrested on charges of blasphemy.

The student was reportedly arrested on Friday for writing an exam paper considered insulting to the Prophet in last month’s baccalaureate exams.

A report in an online platform on Saturday noted that religious authorities demanded the death penalty if the young woman, who has not been named, is found guilty of blasphemy in court.

Read also: Pakistan court sentences man to death over blasphemy on Whatsapp

The report states that Mauritania recently strengthened its blasphemy laws, prescribing the death penalty for Muslims who “ridicule or insult God or the Prophet, even if they repent”, nullifying a previous law where offenders could avoid the death sentence if they expressed remorse.

Pan-Arab news outlet, al-Quds al-Araby, also reports that the student who is from the north-western town of Atar and comes from the Haratin ethnic group, who are the descendants of slaves of sub-Saharan origin, does not stand a chance of an acquittal due to perceived marginalisation against her tribe.

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