Coptic Deacon Martyred in Libya for Refusing Islam
Kidnapped in Libya in early October while seeking work, he was singled out, pressured to convert and later killed; his remains were returned weeks later.
Milad Malak, a 20-year-old Coptic Christian and church deacon from Sebarbay, Egypt, was kidnapped in Libya in early October and killed after he refused to renounce his faith.
Driven by Egypt’s economic hardship, Malak left for Libya on September 2 to seek work. He arrived in Zliten with two Muslim friends and stayed among other Egyptian migrant laborers. On the morning of October 4, militants seized the group, held them hostage for ransom, and subjected them to abuse.
The two companions were freed after their families paid a ransom of about $4,700. They later received medical care in an Egyptian hospital. Milad’s sister, Madonna Malak, said the kidnappers would not release her brother because he was the only Christian among them. They pressured him violently to convert to Islam. He answered that even if they cut him into pieces, he would never renounce his faith. When he would not abandon Christ, the militants killed him. The precise date of the killing has not been publicly established.
After learning of his death from the freed friends, the family appealed to Egyptian authorities for help recovering the body. After several weeks the remains were released. On October 28, relatives and fellow Christians gathered to honor his life. A family friend said he remained faithful to Christ until his last breath.
The killing recalls earlier Islamist violence against Copts in Libya, including the 2015 massacre in which twenty Coptic Christians and one Ghanaian were beheaded by militants. Libya remains one of the most dangerous countries in the world for Christians, ranked ninth in Open Doors’ World Watch List of places where following Christ carries the greatest risk.
Malak’s death fits a pattern of targeted pressure on Christians who migrate for work into unstable regions: abduction, ransom demands, forced conversion attempts, and execution when faith is not surrendered. The Church remembers such witnesses as martyrs who preferred death to apostasy, and prays for persecuted believers, for the consolation of grieving families, and for the conversion of those who shed innocent blood.