Since the 29 January 2008 court ruling and its subsequent acceptance by the Ministry of Interior, no Baha'i in Egypt has been able to receive an ID card or a birth certificate.

The Ministry, through the media, has declared its decision not to appeal the ruling and its intention of allowing dashes "--" in place of "Baha'i" in the religion field of these official documents.

Baha'is in Egypt continue to face a variety of hardships on a regular basis because of being deprived of holding these important official documents that are required for their daily living.

It is expected and hoped that the Ministry of Interior will want to avoid all current distractions and proceed with the implementation of its decision expeditiously. After all, it is entirely up to the Ministry to proceed without delay in applying this--mutually acceptable--solution to all Baha'is in Egypt, and not only to those three individuals who were involved in the lawsuit. Clearly, the Ministry has the power and authority to do so. Delays can only add to frustrations and would not reflect well on the image Egypt is trying to portray to the rest of the world.